Winter dreams
by Shamira The Guardian
Summary: A rewrite of the move with FemJack and my own OC added. Maria Wild woke up one day to find herself a spirit, she join Jackie and the other Guardians in the battle against Pitch Black. Hopefully the story is better than the summary. Currently being rewriten.
1. New life

**New life.**

In a clearing with a river running by it lay a girl of 15; clutching a sword in her hand. She wore brown boots, black trousers, a red long sleeved shirt, a leather bodice over her shirt, and a green scarf around her neck, she had long black hair tied in a pony tail and forest-green eyes were visible under her half-lidded eyes.

The girl was lying in a pool of blood, had pale skin and was barely breathing. She was Malinda Wilder, daughter of the earl of the town she lived in.

The full moon was high in the sky, lighting up the tragic scene. Silver moon-beams hit the water of the river and reflected onto Malinda. As her eyes finally closed her hair slowly began to lose it's colour until it was the same colour as the light that touched her, the blood disappeared as she regained a healthy skin colour, her eyes shot open to reveal that her eyes were now a golden colour.

Malinda looked around her and noticed it was night-time, she swore under her breath. She ran to a tree and climbed up a tree and came down with a dress and a satchel. She put on the dress, wrapped up her sword in some cloth to conceal it and put her satchel over her head. She then ran off for home.

Malinda charged through the open doorway of her house before it closed behind her.

"Sorry I'm late, I think I fell asleep." she announced.

Malinda was confused when none of the servants looked at her, she guessed they were too busy with their jobs. She quickly found Holly, the head maid, sitting in a chair with a worried expression on her face.

"Holly, I'm sorry to have worried you…" She didn't finish her sentence because she was interrupted by the doors opening.

Her father strolled in with a load of men coming in behind him, her father and the men all had tired looks on their faces.

"Daddy…" Malinda began before she was interrupted by Holly rising up from her seat.

"Oh, Master Wilder, did you find young mistress Malinda?" Holly's voice nearly broke.

"Holly, what are you talking about? I'm right here." Malinda was confused.

"I'm afraid the hounds tracked her scent to a clearing by the river but it then disappeared." her father spoke. "This was found there." He presented a small doll.

"Her doll, but the young mistress would never part with it in her life." Holly gasped.

Malinda was about to say something when Holly rushed to inspect the doll, walking right through her. She gasped at the hollow, cold and empty feeling that filled her. Was she…dead? Malinda placed a hand over her chest and picked up her fast beating heart, she wasn't dead. Why did Holly walk through her then?

"Hello, can anyone hear me?" Malinda tied to put a hand on one of the servants but it passed through him as well. "Please daddy, I'm here, I'm not dead!" Malinda wept as she stood in front of her father.

"If Malinda has left behind her doll then we must assume something bad has happened to her." her father proclaimed to Holly and the man behind him, his eyes shining with worry. "Gather the towns people and offer them pay to find Malinda, the one who finds her gets extra."

He then walked to his study, walking right through Malinda.

Malinda was unable to take the pain and ran from the house into the town, but there she got the same result of people just walking through her. Malinda came to a stop in front of a mirror that someone must have accidentally left out, she saw her silver hair and golden eyes.

"What's happened to me? Am I still me or something else?" she asked, looking up to the sky where the moon was.

The moon's light became brighter for a few seconds before dimming again.

"Maria Wild, that's my name now? I'm a spirit" Malinda questioned but got no answer.

The newly dubbed Maria rested her back against a wall and slowly slid down it until she sat on the floor, her face was buried in her arms as she sobbed. Maria did what Holly had taught her, she thought of a happy memory to calm her down. She remembered the old family dog Fred, the one who always loved her protected her with his life until he died, she remembered how her would bark under the bed to chase away the monsters she thought were there, bite at any bullies, and cuddle up to her when she was sad and licked away her tears.

Malinda felt a wet nose press against her arms, when she looked up there he was; Fred her Springer-spaniel. Fred pushed himself onto Maria's lap and started to lick away her tears like before. Maria laughed and hugged her dog, burying her face into his fur.

"Did I make you real?" Maria questioned her dog.

Fred barked in a certain way that meant yes.

"Does that mean you're going to disappear?"

Fred gave her a look that meant 'only if you want me too'.

"No, I don't want you to go anywhere." Maria hugged her dog again.

Malinda and Fred went back to their clearing and curled up together at the base of a tree. Maria still wondering how she had ended up that way.

* * *

A month had passed since Malinda had become Maria, a lot had happened. Her father had given up on the search for her after finding no leads, there was now a memorial service to be held for her. Her father had gathered Maria's most precious belongings and put them in her coffin; including her doll. Her coffin was in the family tomb next to her mother's coffin. Maria stood in the town's graveyard with Fred at her side, watching as people paid their respects to her. She watched as the vicar gave out a speech and people who knew her cried as the door to the tomb was closed. Fred pressed himself close to Maria in comfort.

Maria had learned she could create things by simply thinking of them, but unlike Fred they usually disappeared into silver dust within five minutes; because Maria's memory and link to Fred was so strong he was always there. Maria's satchel was also changed, it could now hold anything she wanted in it without looking bulgy of feeling heavy. Maria had put her dress in her satchel and now wore the clothes her had been wearing when she woke up.

Maria hoped that she found someone who saw her soon, no offence to Fred but she need other people to talk to other than her once dead dog and things from her imagination.


	2. Kindred spirits

**Kindred spirits.**

Maria Wild walked through a forest with Fred at her side, her faithful dog had a bone in his mouth and a content look on his face. It had now been a year since Maria had woken up by the river and she still has had no contact with any humans.

Maria had learned some of her other powers by now. She could now had her creation ability last longer and be more realistic, her sword could turn into any other sort of weapon, she could turn invisible, and she could shape shift. She had recently found out that the silver dust that her creation were made out of could be used for other things, she could sprinkle it over people to influence them and give them ideas, if she had a cloud of it she could used it to fly; albeit poorly so far, and it's what curled around her sword when it changed.

Maria was suddenly startled by the sound of crying, much like the kind of crying she had done after becoming a spirit, she had to find that person.

"Seek!" Maria ordered Fred.

The dog took off and Maria followed not far behind. They finally arrived at a frozen lake, on it was a bare-footed girl with snow-white hair. Fred padded over to the girl and started to sniff at her. The girl looked up with ice-blue eyes at the dog sniffing at her, she held up a hand to Fred. Fred licked the hand before pushing his head under it allowing her to pet him. If she could see and touch Fred then that meant she was a spirit like Maria, and Maria had an idea of why she was crying.

Floating slightly on a cloud of silver dust, because she wasn't that sure footed on ice, she made her way over to the girl and Fred.

"Are you alright?" Maria questioned the girl.

The girl's head shot up to face her, she eyes widened when she realised Maria was talking to her.

"Well?" Maria asked sitting down next to her.

"Yeah," the girl answered at first before sighing. "No, I'm not. No one sees me and they just walk trough me." she admitted.

"I know what it feels like, believe me. I'm Maria Wild by the way and he's my dog Fred." Maria motioned to her dog. "What's your name?"

"Jacqueline Frost, but I prefer Jackie. You said you know how I feel."

"I do. I've been a spirit for around a year and a month and yet every one I see acts as if I'm a ghost, you're the first spirit I've ran into, so aside from the things I create with my powers and animals I haven't had any contact since I became a spirit."

Jackie looked sympathetically at Maria.

"I've been around for nearly two years." Jackie told Maria.

Maria's reaction was to hug the girl sitting next to her. Jackie was stunned at first but quickly hugged her back, both girls let tears slip from their eyes as they rejoiced in each other's contact. Eventually they parted.

"So, what can you do?" Maria asked Jackie.

"I can freeze things, make it snow and fly with the aid of the wind."

"I shape shift, can create things out of my silver dust, change my sword into any weapon, I have a satchel with endless space, turn invisible, my dust also allows me to influence people and fly; but I can't that well." Maria told Jackie. "Do you think you can teach me to fly better?"

Jackie's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Okay she said in an over excited tone."

And just like that a friendship was formed that would literally last for centuries.


	3. Finding where you belong

**Finding where you belong.**

Five years after Jackie and Maria met they were inseparable, going everywhere together, despite Jackie being the spirit of Winter; Maria just wore extra layers of clothing. They had met a few more spirits and enchanted creatures but they didn't want much to do with the two girls.

Jackie was flying along with the aid of the wind, Maria's silver dust surrounded her as she flew along side her friend, Fred was slightly behind them with his paws giving off silver dust and his legs were moving as if he were running along the ground.

"There you are." came a voice from above them.

Looking up they saw a girl who looked to be the same age as Maria. She had short brown hair kept back by a hair band, golden eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses, she wore a Georgian style blue dress **(AN. I've checked and apparently the story is currently in the Georgian era. You pick what you want the dress to look like)**, and blue shoes, strapped to her back were twin katana. Like Maria she was flying using silver dust.

Fred didn't growl at her so they guesses she meant no harm to them.

"What do you mean?" Maria asked.

"We've been looking all over the world for you, you're a hard girl to find." The girl addressed Maria.

"Who's 'we'? And not that I'm not flattered but, why've you looking for me?"

"Because you're one of us. Wait a minute, don't you know what I am, what you are?"

"Spirits."

"Curse the MIM, he didn't tell you anything after he resurrected you."

"He didn't tell us anything besides our names." Jackie supplied the answer.

"Both of you?"

"Yeah." both girls said at the same time.

"That explains why we you didn't come to us and why the other seasons hadn't met Winter yet. Listen follow me, I can help you. I'm Zoë Vale by the way."

"Jacqueline Frost, but I prefer Jackie."

"Maria Wild. This my dog, Fred."

Zoë looked over to Fred, she they flew over to the dog and patted him on the head. "He's amazing, made out of dream-dust yet solid as the real thing. You must have made him out of your most precious memories to get this to work." Zoë breathed.

"He was my dog back when I was human." Maria answered.

"Happy memories can make the sweetest dreams. Anyway, let's get going."

Zoë flew off with Jackie, Maria and Fred on her tail.

* * *

The group flew into Europe, Greece, and landed at Mount Parnassus. The group then made their way down the mountain till they reached a hidden cave guarded my Greek statues.

"This cave cannot be found by accident, you have to know where it is or have someone to lead you too it to get to it." Zoë told them.

The two statues' swords were blocking the entrance. Zoë spoke to them in ,what Maria somehow recognised as, Greek. The statues pulled their swords back and allowed the group to enter the cave, as soon as they entered the statues re-crossed their swords.

"Stick close, this is a small labyrinth, it's our third line of defence if anyone should attack; finding the cave and the two statues out front are the first and second." Zoë told them.

The tunnels finally opened up into a giant chasm. All around the chasm glowing crystals were imbedded into the walls; lighting up the area. At the centre was a huge temple. Zoë led the group into the temple.

The inside of the temple was beautiful. Not one bit of marble stone was chipped or cracked, every wall was covered with ever-changing mosaics depicting the stories of the heroes of history, golden bowls hung down from the ceiling with fires burning in them, and sweet music drifted around the temple.

"This place is amazing." Jackie commented.

"Thank-you. This is where my sisters and I live."

They entered the main room of the temple. There were fountains in each of the four corners, the ceiling looked like the night sky with all of the constellations passing through it, in the centre of the room was a table that looked like it had grown out of the floor. The table had a crystal orb at the centre with dream-dust swirling around it.

"Take a seat." Zoë told Maria and Jackie.

The two girls were just about to point out that there were no seats around the table when three suddenly sprouted up from the floor. The three girls sat down and Fred sat down next to Maria's seat.

Zoë placed her hand on the orb and the dream-dust swirled around faster. "Sisters, I have found her, return to the temple. I've also found the spirit of Winter, so find and bring the other seasons." She said.

"So why where you looking for me?" Maria asked.

"I'll fill you in while we wait for everyone." Zoë told her. "You are a Muse, like my sisters and I, therefore we are sisters. You are the Muse of literature and imagination. When a Muse dies they choose another young female to take their place, the previous Muse of literature and imagination chose you to take her place. Once she died we were meant to find you and teach you your powers as a mortal, once you died and became a spirit you were meant to join us. But you died way earlier that expected and when we tried to find you you were gone. We didn't understand why but I do now. The MIM resurrected you but didn't tell you that you were a Muse and to wait for us to come and get you." she turned to Jackie. "You were meant to have been made by Mother Nature like your other siblings but for some reason that responsibility was handed over to MIM instead."

Maria and Jackie soaked up this new information. They were pulled out of their thoughts by the arrival of some teenagers. There were six of them in total, two boys and four girls.

One girl had light-pink hair and light-green eyes, the next had dark-pink hair and golden eyes, the next had black hair and golden eyes, and the final girl had ginger hair and golden eyes and looked to be the black haired girl's twin. One of the boys had red hair in dreadlocks and dark-green eyes, the other boy had brown hair and brown eyes.

Maria guessed that the girls with golden eyes were her sisters. This was affirmed when all three girls rushed forward and hugged Maria all at once while screaming, "Sister!"

Jackie didn't even have a chance to guess that the remaining three were her seasonal sibling because they were already hugging her.

Soon everyone was introduced. The green eyed girl was Andromeda Bloom the spirit of Spring, the other girl with pink hair was Crysta Leonardo the Muse of Dance and Theatre, the girl with black hair was Anastasia Hanan the Muse of Music, the ginger haired girl was Isabel Hanan the Muse of Art, the boy with dreadlocks was Sorlay Summers the spirit of Summer, and the other boy was Aki Falls the spirit of Autumn.

Andromeda, Sorlay and Aki told Jackie that she was the spirit of Winter and daughter of Mother Earth, but they couldn't explain why the MIM did what he did. Maria finally found out her purpose and even remembered when she met the previous Muse who held her job when she was mortal. However, Jackie still did know why she was chosen to be such an important spirit or remember her past life, and Maria still couldn't remember how she died.

Maria was suddenly distracted from the festivities that were going on when she felt something strange going on with Fred, turning to her dog she saw he know looked like an old dog.

"Fred!" Maria cried out in alarm.

Everyone turned towards the duo. The Muses realized what was going on when they saw Fred. Maria seemed to be having a silent conversation with her dog.

"What's going on?" Jackie asked. She had gotten a little attached to Fred over the years so she was worried for the dog.

"It's happened before but not with spirits." Zoë said. "When young children are sad and lonely they'll sometimes create imaginary friends to help them cope and maintain their innocence. It's the same with Maria, when she was reborn as a spirit she became sad and lonely, so her mind created her dog while her powers over dream-dust made him real. But, like with children, she doesn't have a need for him anymore; she's no longer sad or lonely now that she's found us, so now Fred is going to become dream-dust again." Zoë had a solemn look on her face.

"I understand." Maria sighed. She then turned to her dog. "I don't care that you were part of my imagination, I still love you, Fred. I don't know if I could've coped with out you. Good-bye, you may be gone but you won't be forgotten, I'll always remember you and you'll always be here." Maria put her hand over her heart.

Maria closed her eyes as tears escaped from them, Fred gave her eyes once last lick before Fading into dream-dust. The dream-dust surged forward into Maria's chest.

Jackie crouched down beside Maria and drew the now sobbing girl into her chest, rocking her back-and-forth in a calming manner.

"Why do so many things have to be bittersweet?" Crysta mumbled to herself.

Soon everyone in the room joined in on the hug, comforting not only Maria but Jackie as well.

* * *

A month after meeting the other Muses and Seasonal spirits had passed. Everyone had stayed at the temple with them occasionally leaving to do their duty, Maria and Jackie shared Maria's new room while the other Seasonal spirits shared with the other Muses. Maria's new sisters taught her about dream-dust and it's uses while Jackie's new sibling taught her how to control her powers better and how to use them properly. During their time together all nine had developed a strong bond and decided to make it an even stronger one since they had decided to leave and go about their usual lives again.

"What is it again?" Isabel asked.

"It's called a blood bond, people do it to symbolise how strong their bond of friendship is. But because of the risk a cut can bring people rarely do it, but since we're spirits I don't see the harm." Maria explained. "We simply make a small cut on the palm of our hands and then press our wounds together so our blood mixes with each others."

Everyone eventually agreed to it. Maria made her sword into a dagger and cut everyone's palms, they then did as Maria said and then bandaged their wounds afterwards.

"Everyone okay?" Maria asked.

"Actually, I feel a little stronger." Anastasia proclaimed.

Everyone had a similar answer.

"It appears a blood bond between spirits means more than it does between mortals, I think that we are actually bonded together in some way." Zoë said.

"So we'll know if another one of us is in trouble?" Aki asked.

"I'm guessing so."

"Well I'd love to stay and chat but it's getting close to the Summer solstice, Andromeda and I need to get to the temple of the elements." Sorlay said.

Everyone waved good-bye as Sorlay and Andromeda took off into the sky. Aki took off not long after.

"As welcoming as a permanent place to stay is I'm going to stay with Jacqueline, she was there for me and it doesn't feel right to leave her on her own." Maria told her sisters.

"We understand." they told her.

"Just come to visit every once in a while, okay." Crysta told her.

"I will." Maria said, she then took to the skies with Jackie.


	4. Sorrowed hearts

**Sorrowed hearts.**

Through the centuries Jackie and Maria stuck together through thick and thin, the blood bond between them meant Maria could withstand cold temperatures. Maria would sometimes go off on her own for a holiday in a warm place, to meet the Muses and other reasons.

Maria had discovered her final power, she could make stories come to life; whether it be her own story or someone else's, as long as it was written down she could make it real. Well, to a certain extent. She could make the story happen around her or have tiny figures walk around on the page, but she had to be reading the book for it to work.

Jackie and her seasonal siblings taught the Muses how to contact with the wind. Since they weren't nature spirits they couldn't fly using the wind but they could still ask the wind to give them more speed, soften a fall, and they could even read the wind enough to know if there was any danger approaching.

The girls met many spirits but very few would socialise with them. But some were very nice, like the Sandman. Sandman, or Sandy, had met Jack and Maria while they were flying one night and was very kind to them. Maria liked to help Sandy with his dreams with her powers of imagination, their mixture of dreamsand and dream-dust created some marvellous dreams to behold. Maria loved to see people smile but she couldn't give imagination to children in their sleep without dreams, she could still give them daydreams and influence writers though. Maria had also gotten into the habit of calling Sandy 'Uncle Sandy' because of how kind he was to her and Jackie.

Over the years the girls did manage to get noticed every now and again, mostly thanks to Maria being a Muse and influencing people; though there image had gotten changed a bit. Jackie was more commonly told as a boy is stories about her, getting known as 'Jack Frost' most of the time. Maria didn't manage to get much, the most she could get was the 'daydreamer'.

Both girls had changed their looks as well. Jack now wore a blue hoody, the same pants, and her hair was halfway down her back and was frequently in a plat. Maria now wore mountain boots, blue jeans, a white shirt, a red usually unzipped jacket, her signature green scarf, and her hair would vary in lengths since she could control it's length.

* * *

It was somewhere in the 1990's when Maria and Jackie received some terrible news. Anastasia and Isabel were going to die.

All Muses knew when they were soon to die so they could name an heir to their position, they didn't know how they were going to die though. With heavy hearts the Muses and even the Seasonal spirits joined in on the search for two suitable girls to for Isabel and Anastasia to choose.

Isabel chose a blond haired girl in France who loved to do art and had a care free attitude. Anastasia chose a girl who was the lead singer in her own band and played plenty of instruments, but she was always armed with a comeback when people insulted her.

A week after they chose their successors the two girls disappeared, never to be seen again.

The Muses held a ceremony to honour the two girl.

Maria arrived at the temple and walked into a special room, the room was reserved so honour all the past Muses. Plants grew all around, the finest wine ran from the fountains and the music was the sweetest ever heard. In the room were detailed statues of the past Muses. Anastasia's and Isabel's sat side-by-side, the Muse of Music was playing a harp while the Muse of Art was painting on a easel.

Around the room stood the Muses most trusted spirits, including Sandy, and the two humans who would take up the mantle of Muses one day. Father Time stood before everyone as he began his speech.

"We are here today to mark the passing of Anastasia and Isabel Hanan, the Muses of Music and Art. Wherever they may be and whatever may have happened to them, may their souls burn brightly among the stars. Now their sisters shall sing their graces."

The Muses and the two humans stood before the assembly and sang. Their song depicted the great accomplishments of Anastasia and Isabel and how they may be gone but they'll not be forgotten. Their song drifted out of the temple, out of the mountain, out of Greece and around the world. Spirits hearing it and knowing the meaning of it stood up straight and listened in respect, even some humans heard the song and stopped whatever they were doing to just listen.

Years later, after they were turned into spirit's two humans became full Muses. Melody Cain the Muse of Music and Dora Falcon the Muse of Art.


	5. New Guardians

**New Guardians.**

North had gather the Guardians after seeing Pitch Black, the MIM had told them that Pitch was causing danger and that they were getting a new Guardian.

The four Guardians gathered round a large gem on top of a pillar as it refracted light throughout the whole chamber, like a crystal.

"Uh, guys you know what this means?" Tooth asked the group with a gasp.

"He's choosing a new Guardian." North said.

Tooth nodded. "I wonder who it's going to be."

Sandy created images with his dreamsand as Tooth began to guess who they might be adding to their exclusive group.

"Maybe the Leprechaun?" Tooth guessed.

"Please not the Groundhog, please not the Groundhog." Bunny chanted.

A sudden bright light flash through the room. Above the glowing stone on the pillar, a holographic picture of two people appeared.

"Two new Guardians." North remarked.

Both figures were female teenagers. One wore a hoody, tight pants with binding at the calf and a hooked staff. The other had boots, jeans, a top and jacket, a scarf and a sword in front of her. Both figures had their free hands linked with each others and both had calculating smirks on their faces.

The Guardians stared, baffled by Manny's choice.

"Jacqueline Frost and Maria Wild," North muttered.

"Ah, I take it back." Bunny whimpered. "The Groundhog's fine, just not those two."

"Well, ah, as long as they help to, ah…protect the children, right?" Tooth stammered.

But Bunny couldn't-wouldn't-believe it.

"Jacqueline Frost and Maria Wild? They don't care about children! All Jackie does is freeze water pipes and they both mess with me egg hunts. Right? They're irresponsible, selfish…"

"Guardians." North interrupted.

Bunny shook his head. "Jackie Frost and Maria Wild are many things, but they are _not_ Guardians!"


	6. Why can't they see

**Why can't they see?**

Jackie Frost and Maria Wild sat on top of a post office box in St. Petersburg, Russia, ready to make trouble. Jackie touched the end of her staff down to the ground, which sent frost streaking across the street.

A Russian boy was taking a drink from a water fountain when the water froze midstream. His lips stuck to the icy spray. "Ahhh!" He screamed, unable to move. A mailman slipped on a patch of ice._ Boom!_ The man fell right down on his bottom.

The streak of frost continued up a rainspout. The windows of an apartment building frosted over. Inside, a goldfish swam to the surface of it's bowl to eat, but a thin layer of frost coated the top of the water, blocking the food. In the next room, a writer sat next to a stack of papers. A sudden gust of wind blew his pages out of the window, but with a sprinkle of silver dust he came up with ideas on how to better what he was writing. As the ice moved along the walls of the building, it froze power lines and clotheslines.

Jackie Frost and Maria Wild climbed to a high point in the city, to see what the frost had done..

Jackie and Maria smiled.

"Ah, now that was fun." said Jackie.

Maria nodded while smiling. Today her hair was currently down to her shoulders and in pigtails.

"Hey, wind!" Jackie shouted.

The wind blew faster in their direction and snowflakes pelted them. "Take us home." The wind lifted Jackie up and gave Maria some extra speed, carrying them away from Russia.

"Woooooo-hoooooo!" They both shouted in joy.

* * *

When they arrived home, Jackie decided to give a gift to the town of Burgess. Springtime was almost here, but there was still time for one more…

"SNOW DAY!" Jackie and Maria jumped off their windy ride and landed in the town's centre. They zoomed through the streets, with Jackie's power forcing people to wrap themselves tightly in their jackets.

A boy named Jamie was walking home when Jackie's wind ripped his book out of his hands. The book was called _They__'__re Out There-Mysteries, Mythical Creatures, and the Unexplained Phenomena._

As Jamie grabbed it back, Jackie zoomed up next to him with Maria landing not that far behind. Jackie said, "Huh, that looks interesting. Good book?"

Jamie couldn't see or hear Jackie, so he continued walking. Maria gave a sad simile at her surrogate sisters futile attempts.

Claude and Caleb, twin boys in Jamie's grade, came rushing by. They were pushing each other and laughing as they went.

"All right! Yeah!" Claude cheered.

"Wahoo! Snow day!" Caleb hooted before shoving his brother into a snowdrift.

Jackie grinned and then said, "Your welcome!" But like Jamie, they could't see or hear Jackie Frost.

Jamie ran after the twins. "Hey, guys, wait up. Are you coming to the egg hunt on Sunday?"

"Yeah, free candy!" answered Caleb.

"I hope we can find the eggs with all this snow!" added Claude.

The three boys soon reached Jamie's house. Jamie showed the twins his book. Jackie and Maria watched from their perches on the fence.

"Whoa," Jamie told his friends, "it says here that they found Bigfoot hair samples and DNA in Michigan. That's, like, super close."

"Here we go again," Claude said with a moan.

Jamie looked at his two-year-old sister, Sophie, playing in their front yard. She was wearing fairy wings and trying to ride on their greyhound dog.

"You saw the video too, Claude. He's out there." Jamie entered the gate while the boys stood by the fence and waited.

"Bigfoot's out there you can be sure of that. And he's actually a real nice guy once you get to know him." said Maria to no one in particular, they didn't hear her. "But don't expect him to let you into his home."

Caleb chuckled. "That's what you said about aliens."

"And the Easter bunny," Claude added.

Jamie grabbed his sled from the porch. "The Easter bunny _is_ real."

"Oh, the Easter bunny's real, all right. Real annoying," said Jackie.

"Real grumpy," added Maria.

"And _really_ full of himself," they both said at the same time, even though they knew the boys couldn't hear them.

Claude giggled. "Come on, you guys believe anything."

Sophie got into the fun. "Easter bunny!" she giggled. "Hop, hop, hop!" Sophie fell over from hopping. "Ow."

"Mom!" Jamie called into the house. "Sophie fell again."

Maria shook her head at Jamie's behaviour.

Jamie's Mom came outside to see what was going on. "You okay Soph?" she picked up her daughter and then dusted off the snow.

Caleb asked Jamie, "Are we sledding or what?"

At that, Jamie's Mom said, "Jamie, hat? We don't want Jack Frost nipping at your nose." she handed Jamie his cap.

"I still have no idea how that saying came about." Maria told Jackie, who still had a suspicion that Maria had something to do with the saying's creation.

"Who's Jack Frost?" Jamie asked his mother.

Jamie's Mom smiled. "No one, honey. It's just an expression."

"Hey!" Jackie was offended.

Maria was just about to say something when she felt the call of one of her sisters.

"Sorry, Jackie. A sister calls." Maria said.

"Be as quick as you can." Jackie told her before Maria flew off.

Maria found Melody in front of a house.

"Why'd you call me?" Maria asked her.

"Look at this." the Muse of Music told her, pointing through the window of the house.

Maria looked into the house, she wasn't pleased with what she saw. A young girl sat on the floor trying to hold back her tears, a boy in his teenage years stood above her holding a doll of a fairy.

"You're such a baby, I can't see how you believe in all this stuff. The Tooth fairy is just mum and dad putting the money under the pillow." the boy sneered.

"No, you're wrong, she's real." the girl cried.

"Whatever, baby. I can't wait to see your face when you realize she along with everything you believe in is fake." he said and walked out the room.

Maria saw red. No-one and she repeats no-one messes with a child belief and makes them cry. She absolutely hated it when people would ruin someone's belief in something.

Though Maria was an erupting volcano of anger on the inside, on the outside she looked stoic; Maria was one of those people who got creepy and crazy angry instead of letting their anger show.

"Melody." Maria didn't bother to hide the distain in her voice. "How do you feel about giving this boy his comeuppance?"

Melody was also angered by this scene, not as much as Maria but still pretty ticked-off. "I'm in."

An hour later the boy who had been tormenting the little girl, who turned out to be his sister, was screaming and shaking like a mad-man. He begged for the writing on the walls and horrible images in his mind to stop, promising that he'd never mess with someone's belief again. Like I said, when Maria was really angry she would act creepy and crazy.

Before she left Maria gave the little girl a sprinkle of her dream-dust to boost her imagination and Melody gave her some inspiration on some drawings.

When Maria found Jackie again they told each other of what had happened while they were separated from each other; Maria felt sorry for Jackie because of the kids walking through her again, Jackie couldn't help but feel sorry for the brother that Maria and Melody tortured.


	7. Becoming Guardians

**Becoming Guardians.**

Jackie Frost was hanging upside down outside Jamie's window, as Jamie talked of his sled ride to Sophie. Maria sat not far away on a tree branch watching her surrogate sister. Jackie's cool breath frosted over the glass. The full moon above them lit up the sky.

"If there's something I'm doing wrong, I'd like to know what it is," she said to the moon. "'Cause we've tried _everything_, and no one sees us." The moon remained silent. "I mean you put me and Maria here, the least you can do is tell me _why _I'm here."

The moon continued to shine, steady and unchanged.

Jackie shook her head and grumbled, "Why do I even bother?"

Maria looked to Jackie with sadness in her eyes as she felt her pain, Maria didn't have as much want for humans to see her as Jackie did, she'd gotten past that because of being a Muse.

Jackie moved away from Jamie's window, jumping onto a telephone pole. Maria soon joined her. As they both walked along the wires, a stream of dreamsand zipped behind their heads. Then another in front of them. Strands on dreamsand surrounded Jackie and Maria on their way into the bedroom windows of sleeping children.

Jackie and Maria smiled. "Right on time, Sandman."

Jack and Maria ran along the telephone wire until they caught up to a strand and then began to follow it. Behind them another stream of dreamsand morphed into a dolphin and entered a nearby window.

Jackie and Maria laughed as they raised their hands into the golden streams, causing more streams to break off into different shapes before flying off. Maria added her dream-dust to the dreamsand and the stream became a swirl of silver and gold dancing across the sky.

* * *

"Whoa!" Jackie Frost and Maria Wild were walking high above town, watching dreamsand and some dream-dust streams slip silently into a row of homes when suddenly a shadowy figure ran past them. They leaped down from the wires to investigate. At first all they heard were the voices of townspeople preparing to go inside for the night.

A man asked his wife, "Did you leave the windows open again?"

They didn't hear a reply, but a person in another house said, "The garage door is wide open."

The girls wandered past the houses, still searching for the shadowy figure. Once again, something zoomed by them. They couldn't see what it was, so they jumped onto the roof of a truck for a better view.

_Whoosh._ There it was again. A trash can tumbled over. Jackie and Maria hopped down from the truck and then scooted backwards into the alley.

"Hello, mates."

Jackie and Maria spun to face the owner of the voice. They squinted as Bunny stepped fully into the light.

Bunny spoke first. "Been a long time. Blizzard of '68, I believe? Easter Sunday, wasn't it?"

Jackie and Maria's jaws dropped. "Bunny?" they both said.

"You're not still mad about _that,_ are you?" Jackie said leaning against her staff.

"Yes," Bunny answered simply. "But this is about something else." He glanced around the alley, calling, "Fellas."

Before either girl could react, two huge hairy hands reached forward and then lifted them off the ground.

"Hey!" they protested.

"Durbha wahla," one yeti said as a second yeti took hold of Jackie and Maria's arms.

"Put us down," Maria and Jackie insisted.

The yetis shoved Jackie and Maria into a sack. The first yeti took a snow globe and then smashed it on the ground, saying, "Durtal bardla burdlew." A magic portal opened in front of them.

The yetis indicated that Bunny should go first, saying, "Dward urghwetee."

"Me?" Bunny pointed to himself. "Not on your nelly. See you back at the pole."

And with that, Bunny stomped his big foot on the ground. A rabbit hole appeared, and Bunny jumped into it.

"Bwardla arghl," a yeti said before tossing Maria and Jackie into the snow globe portal.

"Ahhhhhhh!" Maria and Jackie's voices echoed as he fell.

The two Yetis leaped in after them.

* * *

Tooth was running her business from North's fortress. "Tangiers! 421 rue de Barat! _Allez!_" She sent a Mini Fairy to get a tooth from that adress.

Suddenly a sack flew out of a portal and thudded onto the floor.

"They're here," North announced.

Crawling from the bag, Jackie and Maria found North and Sandy staring at them. Tooth was nearby, surrounded by a dozen hovering Mini Fairies who came and went as she barked orders at them.

"Walla Walla, Washington, we've got a trampoline mishap at 1340 Ginger Lane," she told a fairy.

"Canine, lateral, _and_ central incisor. Ouch!" The little fairy hurried away.

North cleared his throat. "There they are." He pointed and announced, "Jackie Frost and Maria Wild." Raising his arms, he welcomed Jackie and Maria. Sandy made a snowflake and book out of dreamsand appear over his head, which were his symbols for their names.

"Wow. You've _got_ to be kidding me," said Jackie. The two yetis reached forward and propped her and Maria up.

"Hey, hey. Whoa, put us down." they ordered.

"I hope the Yetis treated you well," North said.

"Oh, yeah," Jackie replied sarcastically. "We love being shoved in a sack and tossed through a magic portal." the girls said at the same time.

"Oh good." North nodded. "That was _my_ idea." Bunny entered the room and North said, "You know Bunny, obviously."

"Obviously," Jackie and Maria replied.

Bunny stood to the side, with his arms crossed, while the Mini Fairies swarmed around Jack.

"And the Tooth Fairy." North made the introduction.

Before Jackie could answer, Tooth glided towards her. "Hello, Jackie," she greeted. "I've heard a lot about you. And your teeth."

Jackie put her hand to her mouth. "My…my what?"

Tooth leaned in way too close. "Open up," she said. "Are they really as white as they say?" She was very excited. "Yes!" Tooth gasped. "Oh, they really do sparkle like freshly fallen snow.

Several of the Mini Fairies began to flutter like butterflies around Jackie's face, trying to get a look in her mouth. At the side Maria was trying but failing not to laugh at the obscurity of the scene in front of her.

"Girls pull yourselves together. Let's not disgrace the uniform." Tooth ordered them all back.

Jack scowled at Maria for laughing at her, "Sorry." Maria said holding up her hands in peace.

North went on with the introductions. "And Sandman." The dream maker had fallen asleep. North shook him. "Sandy! Sandy! Wake up."

Sandy bolted upright and then smiled at the two girls and waved, they waved back with a, "Hey Sandy." and "Hi, Uncle Sandy."

"Anyone want to tell us why we're here?" Jackie was getting impatient.

Sandy made dreamsand images appear above his head, but too quickly to differentiate.

"That's not really helping," Jack told him.

"But thanks anyway." said Maria.

To the others Jackie said, "We musta done something _really_ bad to get _you_ four together." Jackie walked around the room, stopping before North. "Are we on the naughty list?"

North laughed so hard, his belly shook. "On the naughty list? You two hold record." He became serious. "But no matter. We overlook. Now we are wiping clean the slate," he said, mixing up the phrases, like he so often did.

"How come?" Jackie and Maria asked.

"Good question," Bunny said.

"How come?" North repeated. "I'll tell you how come." He turned the Jackie and Maria. "Because now you are Guardians."

While Jackie and Maria stood there entirely confused, the yetis lit ceremonial torched. Elves leaped down from columns, unfurling banners as they descended. A few of the Mini Fairies brought Jackie and Maria flowers, which Jackie refused to take.

"What are you doing?" Jackie pushed the Fairies back. "Get off me."

Horns blared throughout the room.

"This is the best part," North told Jackie and Maria.

An elf marching band entered the room while the yetis pushed Jackie and Maria to their designated spots on the floor. More elves brought in two pairs of ceremonial boots.

A yeti handed North a thick book. He blew off the dust and then began searching for the correct page.

Jackie slammed her staff on the floor. Frost and wind blasted throughout the room, Maria snatched her sword from her back and sliced the touches and many of the elves instruments in half. Everyone stopped as the pieces of the torches hit the ground and went out.

"What makes you think we would want to be Guardians?" Jackie and Maria asked.

North looked at them and chuckled. "Of course you two do." He cued what was left of the elf band to start playing again. "Music!"

"No music!" Jackie shouted as Maria sliced a couple more of the instruments. The band gave up, and with a huff one of the elves tossed what was left of his trumpet onto the ground and stomped out of the room. "Look," Jackie said to the Guardians, "This is all very flattering, but, ah, you don't want us. You're all hard work and deadlines, and we're all snowballs, fantasy and fun times. We're not Guardians."

"Uh, hum." Maria said nodding her head and agreeing with Jackie.

"That's exactly what I said!" Bunny agreed.

Tooth flew towards the two girls. "Jackie, Maria I don't think you understand what it is we do." She told them to look at the massive Globe behind them. "Each of those lights is a child," Tooth began.

North picked up the story. "A child who believes. And good or bad, naughty or nice, we protect them." Then he added, "Tooth, fingers out of mouth."

Tooth was once again examining Jackie's teeth. She couldn't help herself. "Oh, sorry. They're beautiful." she blushed.

North went on, saying, "Okay, no more wishy-washy! Pitch is out there doing who knows what!"

"You mean the Boogeyman?" Jackie snickered.

"Yes!" North said. "When Pitch threatens _us_, he threatens _them_ as well." North pointed at the Globe.

"All the more reason to pick someone more qualified." Jackie said.

"Pick?" North was frustrated. "You think _we_ pick? No, you were _chosen_, like we were _all_ chosen. By the Man in the Moon."

That caught Maria and Jackie's attention. "What?" they asked.

"Last night," said Tooth. "He chose both of you."

Bunny snorted. "Maybe."

"Jackie and Maria squinted at North. "The Man in the Moon? He talks to you?" Jackie asked

"You see, you cannot say no," North said. "It is destiny."

Feeling like their heads might burst from too much information, Jackie asked, "But why wouldn't he tell us about that himself?" She sighed. "After three hundred years, this is his answer. To spend _eternity_ like you guys, cooped up in some hideout, thinking up new ways to bribe kids? No, that's _not_ for us. No offence."

"How's that not offensive?" Bunny sneered. "You know what I think? I think we just dodged a bullet. I mean, what's these clowns know about bringing joy to children, anyway?"

Jackie and Maria felt like they needed to defend themselves. "Uh, you ever hear of a snow day? I know it's no hard boiled egg, but kids _like_ what I do." said Jackie.

"And I'm a Muse, the Muse of imagination and literature. Do you know how many child I help keep their childhoods with my power." argued Maria.

Bunny replied, "But how many of those kids see you?" Bunny leaned into Jackie and Maria and spoke softly, "None of the kids playing can see you two, It's like you don't even exist."

"Bunny! Enough!" Tooth flitted between Bunny and the two girls.

"No, the kangaroo's right," Jackie said.

Bunny glared at her. "The…the what? What'd you call me? I am _not_ a _kangaroo_, mate."

"Oh." Jackie and Maria scoffed. "And this whole time we thought you were," said Maria.

"If your not a Kangaroo, what are you?" Jackie asked.

"I'm a bunny!" Bunny said. "The Easter Bunny. People believe in me."

"You wanna go at it, Kangaroo." Maria raised her sword.

North stepped forward. "Jackie, Maria." he said, interrupting the argument. "Walk with me."


	8. Centres and beliefs

**Centres and beliefs.**

North led Jackie and Maria into an elevator that looked like a Christmas tree ornament. When the door opened, they stepped out into North's factory.

Jackie and Maria took in the yetis, elves, and toys. Jackie said, "It's nothing personal, North. What you all do…It's just…It's not our thing."

North replied, "The Man in the Moon says it is your thing. We will see."

With big footsteps, North hurried through the factory. Jackie and Maria struggled to keep up. They were distracted by everything they saw.

"Slow down, wouldja?" Maria said, panting.

"We've been trying to bust in here for years, we want a good look." Jackie said, also panting.

North refused to slow. "What do you mean, 'bust in'?"

"Oh, don't worry," Jackie replied. "We've never got past the yetis."

"I would've used my invisibility to sneak in, but that just takes the fun out of it." proclaimed Maria.

A yeti nearby pounded his fist into his palm and growled in warning. "Rwwarrrr."

Jackie and Maria grinned and both said, "Oh, hey, Phil."

North was impatient with their antics. "Keep up, you two! Keep up!"

Jackie and Maria tried to keep pace, but there was so much to look at. Yetis were building toys and moving packages while elves were test-piloting flying machines.

"Whoa!" Jackie and Maria dodged a duck toy.

"I always thought the elves made the toys." said Jackie.

"We just let them believe that," said North. Then he glanced over his shoulder. Jackie and Maria followed his gaze to see elves electrocuting themselves with Christmas tree lights "Very nice! Keep up the good work!" North encouraged.

As they went deeper into the factory, yetis and elves brought North toys for inspection. One Yeti held out a blue robot. "I don't like it," North said. "Paint it red."

The unfortunate yeti looked to his robot, then to the dozen or more other blue robots he had just painted. He let out a anguished moan, then he slammed his head against his work top.

North in a booming voice, he announced, "Step it up everybody."

As the factory roared with increased energy, North, Jackie and Maria entered North's work shop.

North's shelves were filled with sketches, parts, and toys. There were blocks of ice on his workbench from which he carved toy prototypes.

When North rolled up his sleeves, Jackie and Maria could see the Naughty and Nice tattoos. North took a plate from an elf and offered them a slice of fruitcake.

"Ah, no, thanks," Jackie and Maria refused.

North threw the plate across the room. It slammed into the wall with a crash. He then stared with hooded eyes at Maria and Jackie. "Now we get down to tacks of brass," North said with a growl.

"'Tacks of brass'?" Jackie and Maria repeated softly to each other.

North cracked his knuckles, and they stopped talking. A gust of wind closed the office door, and the door locked itself. North moved closer towards Jackie and Maria. With each step forward, Jackie and Maria stepped backwards until they were pressed against the locked door.

"Who are you Jackie Frost, Maria Wild?" North asked. "What are your centres?" He poked their chests, above their breasts though.

Jackie and Maria looked down at North's thick fingers and asked, "Our _centres_?"

"If the Man in the Moon chose _you two_ to be Guardians, you must both have something very special inside," North said. "Hmmm." He picked up a set of Russian nesting dolls, carved into his likeness.

"Here," he told them. "This is how you see me, no? Very big, intimidating. But if you get to know me a little…" He handed the doll to Jackie. "Well go on."

With a curious expression, Jackie set aside her staff and then opened the first doll. Inside was another North doll. This one was a cheery Santa Clause with red cheeks.

"You are downright jolly," Jackie commented.

"Ah," North said. "But not _just_ jolly…" He encouraged Jackie to continue to open the dolls. Each one got smaller and smaller as Jackie removed them. They were all versions of North, but slightly different.

"I am also mysterious," North said, pointing to one doll. "And fearless." He pointed to another. "And caring." One more to go. "And at my centre…"

The smallest doll was no bigger than a jellybean.

"There's a tiny wooden baby?" Jackie joked.

"Look closer. What do you see?" North asked.

"You have big eyes?" Maria guessed.

"Yes!" North beamed. "Big eyes. _Very_ big! Because they are full of _wonder_. That is my centre. It is what I was born with. Eyes that have always seen the wonder in_ everything_!"

With a wave of his arms, the toys on North's shelves burst to life. Jack-in-the-boxes popped. Trains sped around the room. Soldiers began to march. Toy planes zoomed around. An elf was lifted and carried by a balloon.

"Eyes that see lights in the trees and magic in the air." A toy plane stalled in front of North before taking flight again. "This wonder is what I put into the world and what I protect in children. It is what makes me a Guardian. It is my centre." North looked at them. "What is yours?"

"We don't know." Jackie and Maria stared down and the tiny wooden Santa in Jackie's palm. North reached out and then closed Jackie's palm around the doll, silently telling her to keep it.

Suddenly, Bunny came running up.

"We have a problem, mate," Bunny announced in a panicked rush. "Trouble at the Tooth Palace."

North immediately led Bunny, Sandy, Jackie and Maria to the sleigh hangar. Tooth had already gone ahead to her palace. Several yetis rushed in to prepared the sleigh for launch.

"Boys, shipshape," North told the yetis. "As soon as possible."

Jackie and Maria stepped out of the way as a yeti hurried by.

"North, North!" Jackie called for North's attention. "We told you, we're not going with you guys. There's no way I'm climbing into some rickety old-" The sound of pounding hooves and snorting reindeer cut her off. "Sleigh."

The sleigh was incredible. It was huge and shining. This was not just a sleigh-it was a totally tricked-out, hot rod of a sleigh, complete with all kinds of gadgets. "Whoa," was all Jackie and Maria could manage to say.

North called the massive reindeer to a halt.

The sleigh stopped, and yetis finished preparations for take off.

Maria turned to Jackie and gave her the puppy-dog pout. It only took Jackie a few seconds to cave in to the look.

"Okay," Jackie said. She herself was dying to get inside and check out the sleigh. "One ride. But that's it."

"Yay!" Maria called jumping in, Jackie followed her actions.

"Everyone loves the sleigh." North gave a smile and a nod to Sandy, who then climbed into his own spot in the back. Taking the reins, North wrapped them in his powerful arms, then he turned to Bunny who was still standing outside the sleigh.

"Bunny, what are you waiting for?" North asked.

"I think my tunnels might be faster, mate," Bunny said. "And, um, safer."

North reached out and hauled Bunny aboard. "Ah, get in. Buckle up."

Bunny looked frantically around the seat.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Where are the bloody seatbelts?"

North laughed. "That was just expression."

North was asked the yetis, "Are we ready?"

One yeti shook his head, but North ignored him and cracked the reins. "Good!" he shouted. "Let's go! Clear!"

Elves and yetis scattered as the sleigh headed down a long sledding track. North, Jackie, Sandy and Maria were enjoying the speed, while Bunny cowered.

"Out of the way!" North shouted to a few elves as they passed. "Hyah!" He shook the reins, and the reindeer picked up the pace.

The sleigh went straight up for a few minutes, then zoomed straight down. Sandy grinned and raised his arms up high like it was an actual rollercoaster ride, Jackie and Maria gave shouts and screams of delight and Maria copied Sandy's actions. North pulled a lever, sending the sleigh into a corkscrew. "I hope you like the loopty-loops!"

Maria and Jackie gave a louder shout of joy in reply. Bunny turned green. "I hope you like carrots," he said, threatening to throw up his lunch.

"Here we go!" North said. The sleigh reached the bottom of the track and shot off the ramp at the end, up and out into the bright blue sky.

"Wooo-hooooo!" Jackie and Maria screamed as Jackie raised her hands into the air along with Sandy's and Maria's.

"_Klassno_!" North told the reindeer.

Jackie leaped to the rear of the sled to see the North Pole disappear as they sped through the sky. "Hey, Bunny." Jackie stood dangerously on the back edge of the sleigh. "Check out the view." Suddenly, Jackie flipped off the side. "EEEYAAAAGGGGHHH!"

Bunny gasped and gingerly peered over the side, thinking Jackie had fallen, only to find Jackie lounging on the sleigh skid. "Aww. You _do_ care," Jackie said with a smile.

"Rack off ya bloody show-pony." Bunny grumbled.

Behind Bunny, Maria had her hand over her mouth to stop her from laughing to loud.

Bunny scowled at Jackie while Jackie climbed back into her seat, Maria and Jackie immediately gave each other a high-five.

North rattled the reins. "Hold on, everyone. I know a shortcut!"

Maria couldn't help but say, "Usually when someone says that, they end up getting lost or into trouble."

Bunny groaned. "I knew we should have taken the tunnels."

North held up a snow globe. "Tooth Palace," he told the globe. An image of Tooth's castle filled the globe. North tossed the snow globe in front of the sleigh, and a giant portal opened in the sky.

"Hyah!" North shouted. The sleigh was sucked through the vortex.


	9. Attack on Tooth Palace

**Attack on Tooth Palace.**

The sleigh emerged outside the Tooth Palace. Streaks of black filled the sky around the beautiful, delicate castle.

"What?!" North squinted. "What are they?"

On closer look, Jackie could see that the streaks were horses made on black sand. Nightmares. Mini Fairies flew past the sleigh, screaming in horror.

Standing up, Maria reached behind her and drew her sword from her back.

Sandy and Bunny ducked as a Nightmare swooped by the sled. Maria slashed at with her sword but missed the creature by an inch.

"Whoa!" Bunny shouted.

"They're taking the Mini Fairies!" Jackie pointed to a stream of Nightmares chasing a pack of fairies and gulping them down into the blackness. A lone fairy was flying nearby with a big ugly Nightmare at her heels. Jackie reached out and rescued her before the Nightmare could swallow her up.

"Hey, little Baby Tooth," Jackie said. "You okay?"

The Baby Tooth nodded. Maria slashed at another Nightmare and succeed in cutting it open.

North drove the sleigh though the Tooth Palace. There were pillars as far as the eye could see. Each pillar contained millions of boxes where baby teeth were stored.

Inside the chamber, North handed the sleigh reins to Jackie.

"Here," he said. "Take over."

"Huh?" Bunny asked.

"Hyah!" Jackie said, gladly taking control.

North unsheathed his swords and slashed a Nightmare in half. "Yah!" he shouted as the Nightmare split open and hundreds of tooth boxes spilled down into the sleigh. The Nightmare disintegrated.

"They're stealing the teeth!" Bunny cried.

Sandy looked at where the Nightmare disappeared. The Nightmare had become grains of black sand that were now attaching to one another. Within seconds, a new Nightmare was created.

The Guardians looked up just as Jackie was about to plow the sleigh into one of the pillars.

"Jackie! Look out!" North shouted.

Jackie pulled back the reins. "Aaahhh!" The sleigh sideswiped the pillar and then landed hard on a platform.

"Tooth!" North called out. "Are you alright?"

Tooth was flying in circles, frustrated, angry. "They took my fairies!" she shrieked. "And the teeth! All of them! Everything is gone! _Everything_!"

The Guardians gathered around. Baby Tooth popped out of Jackie's coat hood and then flew to Tooth.

"Oh, thank goodness! One of you is all right!" Tooth raised her damp eyes to the fairy.

Pitch's voice boomed through the cavernous room. "I have to say, this is very, very exciting." He was standing above them with a smug smile. "The big four. All in one place. I'm a little starstruck." His chuckle echoed. "Did you like my show on the Globe, North?" But before North could reply, he said, "Got you all together, didn't I?"

"Pitch!" Tooth demanded. "You have got thirty seconds to return my fairies!"

"Or what?" Pitch's voice boomed as he darted back into the shadows.

Tooth followed the echo and found him near one of her tooth box columns.

"You'll stick a quarter under my pillow?" Pitch mocked before disappearing again.

"Why are you doing this?" North asked

With the speed and effortlessness of a shadow, Pitch had moved to the other side of the palace. He slowly travelled to the centre of the chamber.

"Maybe I want what you have," he said. "To be believed in. Maybe I'm tired of hiding under beds."

"Maybe that's where you belong," Bunny suggested.

"Ah, go suck on an egg, rabbit," Pitch replied.

Bunny looked over the side of the platform where he was standing to see Pitch there, hanging upside down. Pitch winked at Bunny, then moved away.

"Hang on, is that Jacqueline Frost and Maria Wild?" Pitch asked, laughing. "Since when are you all so chummy?"

"We're not," Jackie replied.

"Oh good," Pitch told the girls. Jackie and Maria turned to find Pitch standing nearby. "A neutral party. Then I'm going to ignore you. But you must be used to that by now."

Bunny was angry. "Pitch! You shadow-sneaking ratbag! Come here!"

Bunny leaped after Pitch, but he once more disappeared and reappeared elsewhere. Tooth spotted him first. She grabbed one of Bunny's boomerangs and then flew at Pitch in a rage. "Ahhhhhh!"

Before Tooth could reach him, Pitch sent a huge Nightmare toward her. Tooth shrank back, Baby Tooth took cover in Jackie's Jacket.

"Whoa!" Pitch said to the Nightmare. "Easy girl. Easy." He twirled his fingers through the Nightmare's mane. He held some of the black sand in his hand and then turned to Sandy.

"Look familiar, Sandman?" Pitch asked. "Took me a while to perfect this little trick. Turning dreams into Nightmares."

The Guardians all gasped.

Pitch chuckled. "Don't be nervous, it only riles them up. They smell fear you know."

"What fear?" Bunny asked. "Of _you_? No one's been afraid of you since the Dark Ages."

Pitch's eyes flashed for just a moment. But then he managed a smile. "The Dark Ages," he said as he began to reminisce. "Everyone frightened. Miserable. Such happy times for me. Oh, the power I yielded.

"But then you showed up!" he continued. "With your wonder and light! Lifting their hearts and giving them hope!"

He explained to the Guardians, "Meanwhile, everyone wrote me off as just a bad dream. 'Oh, there's nothing to be afraid of. There's no such thing as the Boogeyman.' Well, that's all about to change."

A cracking sound filled the room. All the Guardians turned to see a beautiful column crumble.

"Oh, look." Pitch clapped his hands. "It's already happening."

"What is?" Maria asked.

"Children are waking up and realising the Tooth Fairy never came," Pitch said. "Such a little thing, but to a child…"

"What's going on?" Jackie cringed as more columns fell and the palace broke apart.

"They don't believe in me anymore," Tooth explained sadly.

"Didn't they tell you two?" Pitch asked. "It's great being a Guardian, but there's a catch. If enough kid stop believing, all their palace and powers go away. And little by little, so do they."

Jackie's and Maria's jaw dropped as they began to understand.

Pitch nodded. "No Christmas or Easter or little fairies that come in the night. There will be nothing but fear and darkness and me! It's your turn not to be believed in!"

Bunny began to throw his boomerangs at Pitch. But Pitch escaped, flying through the palace on the back of Onyx, his favourite Nightmare.

The Guardians followed him. Jackie and Maria brought up the rear.

Using eggs that were bombs, Bunny tried to slow Pitch down, but the eggs exploded in empty space.

"He's gone," North said, staring at the place where Pitch had disappeared.


	10. Collecting the teeth

**Collecting the teeth.**

Tooth sat down. She held the tooth boxes that were left. Baby Tooth rested on a broken box nearby.

Jackie and Maria crouched beside Tooth.

"We're sorry about the fairies," Jackie told Tooth.

Tooth sighed. "You should have seen them. They put up such a fight."

"Why would Pitch take the teeth?" asked Maria.

"It's not the teeth he wanted," Tooth explained. "It's the memories inside them."

Jackie and Maria stared at her. "What do you mean?" they asked.

Tooth led Jackie and Maria across the palace lagoon. The water under Jackie's feet hardened into ice with each step, creating a bridge of ice of her and Maria.

"That's why we collect the teeth, Jackie, Maria. They hold the most important memories of childhood." Tooth showed them a wall of mural. It was a picture of memories being gathered. "My fairies and I watch over them, and when someone needs to remember what's important, we help them. We had everyone's here," she said. "Both of yours too."

"My memories?" Jackie asked.

"From when you were young," Tooth answered. "Before you became Jacqueline Frost."

Jackie shook her head. "But I wasn't anyone before I was Jacqueline Frost."

"Of course you were. We were all someone before we were chosen," Tooth said.

"What?" Jackie didn't fully understand.

"I know I had a life before being turned into Maria Wild by the Man in the Moon because I remember my life as Malinda Wielder. But Jackie has no memories of her life before being turned into a spirit by the Man in the Moon." explained Maria. "And I still have no memory of being turned into a spirit.

North entered the conversation. "You should have seen Bunny." he chuckled, talking about something that the three females had not been paying attention to.

"Hey, I told you never to mention that!" Bunny said.

Jackie was struggling with this new information. "That night at the Pond…I just…why, I assumed. Are you saying…are you saying I had a life before that? With a home? And a family?"

"You really don't remember?" Tooth asked.

Jackie's face was blank. "All these years, and the answers were right here." She looked around the crumbling palace. "If I find my memories, then I'll know why I'm here."

Maria winced in sympathy for her surrogate sister, Jackie was putting her hope up a little too much in her eyes. Maria had retained her memories but she still wanted to know how she was torn from her human life. Jackie loved to here of Maria's past life, but she couldn't hide her jealousy over it.

Maria was brought back from her reminiscing by Tooth's cries.

"Oh no. The children!" Tooth cried "We're too late."

"No! No! No such thing as too late," North said. "Wait. Idea! Ha!" North knew how the Guardians could help. "We collect the teeth."

"What?" Tooth asked.

"We get teeth! Children keep believing in_ you_!" North declared.

"We're talking seven continents," Tooth said. "Millions of kids."

"Give me a break!" North told her. "You know how many toys I deliver in one night?"

"And eggs I hide in one day?" Bunny put in.

North turned to Jackie and Maria. "And if you two help us, we will get your memories."

Jackie looked to Tooth, who agreed to the deal. Sandy gave Jackie a thumbs-up. Bunny just groaned. Jackie looked to Maria, who smiled and shrugged her shoulders. Jackie turned back to North and smiled.

* * *

In Shanghai, China, North shot out of a chimney and raced across the rooftop. "Quickly! Quickly!" he said as Bunny popped up a roof away.

"Here we go, here we go," Bunny chanted.

Jackie and Maria zipped past Bunny. "Hop to it, rabbit. We're five teeth ahead!" said Jackie.

"Yeah, right," Bunny replied. "Look, I'd tell you two to stay outta my way, but, really, what's the point? Because you both won't be able to keep up, anyway!"

"Is that a challenge, cottontail?" Jackie asked.

"Oh, you don't want to race a rabbit, Sheila," Bunny said.

"A race?" North asked Jackie, Maria and Bunny. "Is it a race? It's going to be epic!"

"Well good luck in keeping up with me." stated Maria with a wink, she then suddenly turned invisible with a childish laugh.

* * *

Tooth darted around with Baby Tooth struggling to keep up. "Four bicuspids over there!" She pointed left. "An incisor two blocks east! Is that a molar? THEY'RE EVERYWHERE!" Tooth was overwhelmed by the task in this city alone. She flitted off the rooftop and straight into a billboard advertising toothpaste. "Ow," she said, moaning and rubbing her head.

Jackie leaped to the top of the billboard to check on her. "You okay?"

"Fine," Tooth said. "Sorry. It's been a really long time since I've been out in the field."

"How long is a long time?" Jackie asked.

"Four hundred and forty years," she replied. "Give or take."

Before Jackie could respond, Tooth noticed a tiny glow under the pillow of a nearby room. And without another word, Tooth rushed off.

* * *

Inside a dimly lit bedroom, Jackie was about to snag a tooth when Bunny popped out of a hole in the floor. Bunny grabbed the tooth and gave a smug laugh, Jack shot frost at him in response making him cry out in shock.

* * *

In the next city, North discovered two teeth under a pillow. He nabbed them both. "Yipa!" he said triumphantly as he hurried off.

* * *

At another home, Bunny got several teeth from a sleeping child. "Jackpot!" He glanced around the room. There were hockey posters on the walls, and the shelves were loaded with trophies. "Looks like you're a bit of a brumby, hey mate," Bunny remarked.

* * *

North stood by a boy's bed. "It's a piece of pie!" he said softly. But as he reached forward, Bunny came up through a rabbit hole in the floor. While the two Guardians competed for the tooth, Sandy slipped between them and took the prize for himself.

"That's my tooth!" North whisper-yelled at the Sandman's back. "Sandy! Sandy!"

* * *

Bunny continued on his mission to sabotage Jackie. When Jackie came into the next room, Bunny opened a rabbit hole and Jackie fell through. Bunny took the tooth and then disappeared down another rabbit hole.

* * *

North had spotted another tooth under a child's pillow, but when he reached under the pillow to get it, it had gone. North heard Maria's distinct fading laughter as he realised the advantage Maria had over all of them.

* * *

Tooth reached under a child's pillow and pulled out a tooth. The tooth was perfect, but there was a mouse attached to the root. Baby Tooth immediately tackled the mouse, shaking him free.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Tooth pulled Baby Tooth back. "Take it easy there, champ. He's one of us. Part of the European division." Tooth turned to the mouse and then asked if he was okay in French,

"_Ca va?__"_

* * *

In yet another city Bunny was about to grab his next tooth, but when he reached under the child's pillow, he found a note instead. The note showed an arrow pointing towards the window. Bunny followed the direction of the arrow. There he found North, holding the kid's tooth and grinning.

"Huh?" Bunny said in surprise as North dashed towards another house.

* * *

Bunny was certain the next tooth was his, but when he reached the roof, he heard the cracking sound of ice and frost. "Crikey!" Bunny began to slip. Tumbling down the slick, tilted roof, Bunny passed Jackie. Jackie easily reached out and snagged the tooth from Bunny.

"Yes!" Jackie cheered, but an instant later a stream of dreamsand surrounded Jackie.

Sandy waved good-bye as he snagged the tooth for himself. But the tooth was suddenly lifted from his grasp and disappeared, Maria's childish laughter could once again be heard.

* * *

North dropped down a chimney into a cottage. He was excited to get this tooth and increase his count. As he touched down on the wooden logs in the fireplace, a fuzzy paw reached out. "Ha-ha! Ho, ho, ho!" Bunny laughed as he lit the fire.

Ahh!" North screamed, bursting out of the hot and blazing chimney to the cool safety of the roof.

* * *

North, Sandy, Jackie, Maria and Bunny met up on a roof-top. The competition had been good fun, and they each had a large sack filled with teeth.

"Wow!" Tooth was impressed. "You guys collect teeth and leave gifts as fast as my fairies."

The Guardians stared at one another.

Tooth surveyed their panicked looks and asked, "You guys have been leaving gifts, right?"

They were all too embarrassed to reply.

"Oops." Maria said to Jackie.

A few minutes later the faithful Guardians stood in line at a coin dispenser. They each took a turn stuffing wrinkled bills into the slot, changing cash into coins.

Then they got back to work.

North took a tooth and then put a coin and a candy cane in its place.

Bunny carried coins in his thick, fuzzy paws. He left a coin and a pair of Easter eggs on a child's bed.

Maria and Jackie stopped momentarily to look at what Bunny and North were leaving for the children.

"Those are going to be some very confused children when they wake up." remarked Maria, she then flew off to collect more teeth and leave gifts for those she had already taken teeth from.

Baby Tooth took a tooth from beneath a feather pillow and stuffed a heavy coin under it.

Tooth left a coin for a sleeping child.

Sandy entered a house through the doggy door with a coin in hand but then saw North plugging in a Christmas tree and leaving presents, he tossed his coin away and left.

A toddler spotted the Guardians through his bedroom window, jumping from roof to roof. He was so surprised, he dropped his cup of juice.

* * *

Finally the Guardians climbed back into the sleigh. Nearby, a Nightmare spy watched North take up the reins. As the Guardians lifted off into the sky, the Nightmare vaporised down a street drain, slipping into the sewer.

Pitch was inside his darkened lair, standing near a light-covered Globe, exactly like the one in North's Workshop. Hanging on the walls around his head were the stolen boxes of teeth. The teeth glittered in the Globe's light while Mini Fairies stared out, trapped in cages.

Pitch poked a finger at his Globe. He turned to the Nightmare that was slithering into the room. "Why aren't the lights going out?"

The Nightmare let out a soft whinny.

Pitch stamped his foot angrily. If the lights weren't going out on his Globe, it meant that children still believed. His voice boomed. "They're collecting the teeth?"

The Mini Fairies began twittering at the news. Their hopeful, tiny, voices echoed throughout the Lair.

Pitch swirled to face them. "Oh, pipe down," he demanded. "Or I'll stuff a pillow with you." Scowling, Pitch raised a hand and formed an image of Sandy in nightmare sand. "Fine, have your last hurrah. For tomorrow, all your pathetic scrambling will be for nothing."

Pitch crushed Sandy's image with his fist.


	11. Nightmares and dreams

**Nightmares and Dreams.**

Jamie's awesome toy robot stood watch on his bedside table. As he slept, Jamie's tongue rested in the new gap between his teeth.

Tooth fluttered over Jamie's head while Jackie stood by the bed.

"Left central incisor, knocked out in a freak sledding accident." Tooth raised her eyes to meet Jackie's. "I wonder how that could have happened, Jackie?"

Jackie laughed, looking at the picture Jamie had drawn and hung on his wall. The one of Jamie on his sled, midair, pelting his friends with snowballs.

Jackie blushed. "Kids, huh?"

Tooth smiled at the peacefully dreaming boy. "This was always the part I liked most-seeing the kids." Tooth paused before adding, "Why did I ever stop doing this?"

Jackie could see how much Tooth loved her job. "It's a little different up close, huh?" Jackie remarked,

Tooth nodded. "Thanks for being here, Jackie, you and Maria. I wish I had known about your memory. I could've helped you."

"Yeah, well, look, let's just get you taken care of," Jackie said. "Then it's Pitch turn."

A sudden noise outside attracted their attention. Tooth and Jackie both turned to the window.

"Here you are!" North was hauling a large sack over his shoulder. The windowsill as North squeezed himself through. Sandy and Baby Tooth came in after.

"What gives, slowpokes?" North asked.

"SHHHHH," Tooth whispered a warning. Jamie was still asleep.

"How you feeling Toothy?" North asked softly.

"Believed in," Tooth replied.

"Ha-ha!" North gave a little chuckle. "That's what I wanted to hear."

"Oh, I see how it is…." Bunny arrived through his rabbit hole. "All working together to make sure the rabbit gets last place."

North held his finger up to his lips. "Shhhhhh."

Jackie raised her bulging bag of teeth. "You think I need help to beat a bunny? Check it out, Peter Cottontail."

"You call that a bag of choppers?" Bunny's bag was even bigger. "Now _that__'__s_ a bag of choppers."

"Bunny and Jackie!" North interrupted. "This is about Tooth. It's not about competition! But if it was"-his bag was the largest of them all-"I win."

Before North could do a Russian jig, Maria appeared and was sitting on something invisible. "Not quite North." she said. The giant bag of teeth she was sitting on now became visible, it was slightly bigger than North's. Maria gave a smug grin.

"No fair." North complained.

Suddenly a bright light caught North in the belly.

"Oh no."

"Santa Claus?" Jamie asked, rubbing his eyes. He sat up, holding a flashlight and peering around the room. "The Easter Bunny? Sandman? The Tooth Fairy?" Jamie popped up from his pillows. "I knew you'd come!"

"Surprise!" Tooth said, pretending that this was all very normal. "We came."

"He can see us?" Jackie asked.

Jamie scanned the room, completely amazed. He looked at everyone except Jackie and Maria, whom he still couldn't see.

"Most of us," Bunny replied.

"Shhh," Tooth warned. "You guys, he's still awake."

"Sandy, knock him out," Bunny suggested.

"Huh?" Jamie scooted back on the bed as Sandy came forward pounding his hand in his palm.

"With the dreamsand, ya gumbies." Bunny shook his head.

"With that, Jamie's dog woke up, and shot up to growl at Bunny.

"No." Jamie told the dog. "Stop! That's the Easter Bunny. What are you doing? Down!"

The dog came nose-to-nose with Bunny.

"All right," Bunny said. "Nobody panic."

Jackie and Maria thought it was funny. "But that's a greyhound." pointed out Maria.

"Do you know what greyhounds _do_ to rabbits?" continued Jackie.

"I think it's a pretty safe bet he's never met a rabbit like me," Bunny said.

"The dog is a girl." Maria pointed out for no reason.

Sandy made at baseball out of dreamsand as Jackie and Maria rolled their eyes at Bunny. Jackie noticed an alarm clock on the bedside table, Maria did also and hid behind her sack of teeth.

Bunny continued, "Six foot one, nerves of steel, master of Tai Chi, and the ancient art of-"

Jackie couldn't help herself. She reached over and pressed a button on the alarm clock with her staff. _RINNGG!_

"Crikey!" Bunny exclaimed as the dog leaped towards him. He hopped around the room, the greyhound nipping at his tail.

"Stop! Sit!" Jamie commanded. "Down, girl, down!"

The dog chased Bunny over the bed and up the walls while Tooth struggled to silence the alarm clock.

"Sandy!" cried North, urging him to throw the ball at the dog and end this madness.

but before Sandy could throw it, the dog knocked into him. Dreamsand went flying.

Tooth shook her head at the chaos. "This is not the proper Tooth Fairy behaviour," she scolded.

North ducked when the dreamsand sailed towards him, causing the dreamsand baseball to smack Tooth directly in the face. The sleepy knocked her and Baby Tooth out cold. They both fell to the floor with a thud. a dreamy little tooth floated above each fairy's head.

Streams of dreamsand filled Jamie's bedroom.

Bunny dodged the dog, saying, "This things rabid! Get this dingo off me!" He caught a whiff of sand. "Oh no." Bunny yawned before falling asleep, dreaming of carrots.

Next to him, the dog toppled over and began to dream of bunnies.

"Candy canes," North said before he also began to snooze. Unfortunately, when North fell asleep, he was still standing up. As his dreams took over, North hit Jamie's mattress before hitting the floor, springing Jamie into the air like a catapult.

"Whoaaaa!" Jamie shrieked before Sandy caught him. Sandy dumped a bit of dreamsand on the boy's head, then put him back into bed.

"Whoops." Jackie took a long look around the now-quiet room. Tooth and Baby Tooth were snoozing in a corner while Bunny was snuggling with North.

"Oh, I really wish I had a camera right now," Jackie said.

A bright flash caught their attention, they looked over to see Maria holding a camera.

"Hello blackmail." she said shaking the camera slightly, she then put the camera into her satchel.

At that moment, Sandy spotted something dark and shadowy outside the window.

Jackie and Maria turned to see where Sandy was looking.

"Sandy, Maria, c'mon," Jackie said. "We can find Pitch."

Sandy paused to look at everyone sleeping soundly in Jamie's room, then followed Jackie and Maria out into the night.

* * *

Sophie toddled into her big brother's room while everyone was sleeping. She giggled as she reached into North's pocket and took out his magical snow globe.

"Pretty!" Sophie said. She carried the globe over to Bunny. "Easter Bunny!" Sophie said joyfully. "Hop! Hop! Hop!"

Imitating a bunny's bounce, Sophie shook the globe. It revealed a beautiful image of Bunny's Warren. Delighted, Sophie began to take the globe back to her room, but on the way, she tripped. The globe smashed onto the floor, and with a flash of light, a magical opened in front of her.

A warm breeze came from the portal, and Sophie leaned forward to check it out.

"Whuh-huh?" North woke up an instant too late. By the time North opened his eyes, Sophie was already gone.

* * *

Jackie, Maria and Sandy followed two Nightmares across the rooftops of Burgess.

"Wahooo!" Jackie said, riding the wind to catch one of the Nightmares. The Nightmare flew over a rooftop. Jackie and Maria followed it.

Jackie and Maria chased the Nightmare away from a house, just in time to see Sandy wrestling with the other one. The Nightmare was strong, but Sandy was stronger. With a blast, Sandy changed the dark grit into golden dreamsand and then rode the dream, now shaped like a stingray, through the town.

Jackie and Maria went after the one that got away. "Haaa!" Jackie shouted at the Nightmare turned down an alley and then travelled up to another roof top. "I got it!" Jackie blasted frost from her staff, freezing the Nightmare into a solid mass.

"Sandy!" Jackie called. "Sandy, did you see that? Look at this thing." She poked the Nightmare with her staff.

But it wasn't Sandy who appeared behind them.

"Frost, Wild?" Pitch was standing on the same roof as Jackie and Maria.

Jackie shot a streak of frost at him, but Pitch dodged it. Maria raised her sword ready for any attack.

"You know," Pitch said, "for a 'neutral party,' you spend an awful lot of time with those weirdos. This isn't your fight, Jackie, Maria."

"You twist imagination to create fear, I'm sure I've seen you corrupt dream-dust as well, and as a Muse I can't let the corruption go without justice." Maria stated.

Pitch was just about to make a remark when a noise behind him caused him to turn. Sandy was standing there. Pitch quickly moved away. "Now this is who I'm looking for-" Before Pitch could finish the sentence, Sandy blasted him with dreamsand.

Pitch ducked. He aimed his nightmare sand at Sandy. Jackie and Maria ducked as Sandy was forced onto a high ledge.

Sandy nearly fell backwards, but saved himself at the last minute. Using a wave of dreamsand, Sandy shot back at Pitch, snaring him in dreamsand and throwing him off the roof, causing him to crash onto the street below.

Jackie and Maria peered down at Pitch. "Remind us not to get on your bad side," they told Sandy.

Pitch shook off the crash, stepping away as Sandy, Maria and Jackie flew off the roof and into the street.

"Okay, easy. You can't blame me for trying, Sandy. You don't know what it's like to be weak and hated. It was stupid of me to mess with your dreams. So tell you what: You can have 'em back," Pitch offered.

Before Sandy, Maria and Jackie could react, hundreds of Nightmares filled the street and stood on the surrounding rooftops.

Jackie turned to Sandy. "You take the one on the left. We'll take the ones on the right."

Pitch rose from the ground, riding his Nightmare horse, Onyx. "Boo!" Pitch shouted at Sandy, Maria and Jackie. The Nightmares began to charge.

Jackie, Maria and Sandy huddled together, back-to-back, searching for an escape.

Suddenly the sound of sleigh bells and reindeer hooves filled the air.

North's sleigh zoomed overhead, buzzing past Pitch and his Nightmares.

Bunny had been asleep in the sleigh, but finally woke up. He was a bit confused when he said, "Get out of my Warren." Then realizing where he was, Bunny gathered his boomerangs for battle.

Sandy flung dreamsand at the Nightmares. Jackie used her staff to fight them off one by one. Maria used her sword to slice through any Nightmare unlucky enough to be in her reach, she then suddenly shape shifted into a big silver wolf and began to bite at the Nightmares and slash at them with her claws.

Tooth and Baby Tooth flew out of the sleigh, coming to Jackie's, Maria's and Sandy's aid.

While Jackie knocked Nightmares away with her staff, Tooth used her wings to slice through them.

Like a general at war, Pitch commanded his Army of Nightmares to continue the attack.

Maria was struggling with too many Nightmares so she changed back to normal and took to the air, she then reached deep into her satchel and produced a grenade, she then pulled the pin out with her teeth and chucked it into the swarm of Nightmares. With a large explosion the Nightmares turned back into a mass of black sand.

Jackie flew up to Maria. "I thought you got rid of them all after WW2."

"I kept a few just in case." Maria said, shrugging her shoulders. Jackie and Maria then flew separate ways to deal with more Nightmares.

Bunny jumped from the sleigh onto a roof. His boomerangs flew, dissolving every Nightmare in their paths. When the sleigh passed by, Bunny hopped back in.

"Ha, ha, ha," North cheered. "Come on!"

Jackie dodged two Nightmares, but a third one knocked the staff out of her hand. Slipping from the roof, Jackie began to fall

"Aaaaaaah!" She got control by grabbing back her staff and hooking it to the sleigh rails.

"You might want to duck," Bunny told Jackie as he flung a boomerang at one of the Nightmares.

Maria destroyed the last Nightmare that was after her, she then noticed how far away she was from the others. "Wind get me back to the others as soon as possible!" Maria shouted to the wind as she flew back to the others, the wind gave her a boost of speed.

Pitch's Nightmares surrounded Sandy, and he valiantly fought them off with pleasant dreams of his own.

"We gotta help Sandy!" Jackie pointed from the sleigh.

"Hyah!" North flicked the reins.

From the corner of her eye, Jackie saw Maria quickly catching up with the sleigh from behind.

But before they could reach Sandy, Pitch formed nightmare sand into a bow and arrow. He aimed at Sandy's back. The arrow hit Sandy between the shoulders and then exploded.

"Noooo!" Jackie and Maria yelled.

Jackie leaped out of the sleigh.

"Jackie!" North called after her.

Pitch chuckled as the Nightmares took over Sandy's dreams.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! Don't fight the fear, little man," Pitch said.

North pulled the sleigh around for a rescue mission, but Nightmares surrounded him. "Hurry, hurry," North called to Jackie, who was on her way to help Sandy.

Sandy's dreamsand was turning black as the bad dreams took over. "I'd say sweet dreams, but there aren't any left," Pitch said.

Jackie continued on, fighting off Nightmares, struggling to reach Sandy. Maria was not far behind, but the amount of Nightmares kept her from being as fast as Jackie.

"Sandy," North said, moaning. A few seconds later, Sandy's dreamsand was entirely black.

Sandy was gone.

Pitch clapped his hands with joy.

"No…NOOOOO!" Jackie reached Pitch and then rushed forward, her staff was bright with energy that would soon be dispensed at Pitch.

Pitch turned and directed his Nightmares at Jackie.

It was too much to take at once. The Nightmares surrounded Jackie and began to overtake her.

Pitch stood back, smiling.

"Jackie!" Maria called, she rushed to where her surrogate sister disappeared.

Jackie swung her staff and then rode a gust of wind out of the Nightmare cloud. Frost and ice filled the street. The attacking Nightmares turned into snow.

"Aaahh!" Pitch was caught by surprise. He was tossed back out of the street and far, far away.

The effort took all Jackie's energy. She collapsed and fell out of the sky. Maria managed to catch her

Maria flew them both back to the sleigh, once inside the sleigh they sat at the back hugging each other.

"Jackie, how did you do that?" Tooth asked.

"I didn't know I could," Jackie replied groggily. She then rested her head on Maria's right shoulder, Maria copied her actions with Jackie's shoulder.

As the sleigh zipped off into the night, Pitch stood up and looked around at where he'd crash-landed. At first he was angry, but then he was pleased.

Smiling, he watched the sleigh slip into a snow globe portal.

Jacquelyn Frost was a worthy opponent.

"Finally!" Pitch dusted himself off. "Someone who knows how to have a little fun!" He waved at Jackie as the sleigh took off to the North Pole. Pitch was looking forward to the next time they met.


	12. The Easter fiasco

**The Easter fiasco.**

Back in the Globe room at the North Pole, the Guardians held a ceremony for Sandy. Candles surrounded his empty spot on the floor.

Tooth, North and Bunny held hands while bells echoed throughout the room.

Jackie was sitting on a windowsill, with Maria as a smaller silver wolf resting her head on Jackie's lap. Jackie's long snow-white hair that was usually in a braid was now down covering her face like a curtain, her hood was also up obscuring her face from view. She absentmindedly played with a lock of her hair with one hand while drawing a picture of Sandy on the frosted window with the other.

North walked over to them. "Are you two alright?" he asked.

"I just wish I could have done something." Jackie replied.

"Done something?" North asked. "Jackie, you stood up to Pitch. You saved us."

Jackie pinched her lips together. "But Sandy wo-"

North interrupted. "Would be proud of what you did."

Jackie sighed again, nodding.

Maria turned back to normal, her hair now grown out to her ankles in her mourning for Sandy; her mood usually affected the length of her hair for some reason.

"I don't know what you were in your past life, but in _this_ life you are a Guardian. You too Maria." North touched Jackie's and Maria's shoulders.

"But how can I know who I am until I know who I was?" asked Jackie.

"You will," North assured him. "I feel it in my belly."

Jackie and Maria allowed North to lead him back towards to Globe of belief.

"Look how fast they're going out." Tooth pointed at the tiny lights across the continents.

"It's fear," Jackie said, leaning closer to the Globe. "He's tipped the balance.

"If the balance is tipped then the whole world goes into chaos." said Maria. She then went into a quiet discussion with Jackie.

Bunny wasn't going to let all the lights disappear. "Hey, buck up, ya sad sacks! We can still turn this around! Easter's tomorrow! I need your help. I sat we pull out all the stops , and we get those little light flickering again!"

Maria pulled out of the conversation she and Jackie were having. "Sorry Bunny not me."

"What, why?" asked Bunny trying to keep calm.

"Pitch is obviously very strong, and now we're down one Guardian. I still can spread imagination, meaning I can keep some of those lights on a little longer, I can't do any good for those who sleep though, without dreams imagination won't do any good. I'll see if I can also get my sisters to help." Maria explained. "Don't worry I'll be back in time for the final battle. And I'll make sure that Pitch won't get me."

The Guardian reluctantly nodded their heads. Maria took off her satchel and then gave it to Jackie.

"Take this, it contains some tricks that you can use." Maria told Jackie.

Jackie looked shocked that Maria was giving her something so precious to her. Maria rarely ever parted with her satchel or sword, so to be trusted with either was a great honour.

Maria then summoned her dream-dust and flew out of the window. Jackie pulled the strap of the satchel over her head and let it rest at her side.

North quickly became energised, North led every to the toy factory. "We may be down another Guardian but Bunny is right. As much as it pains me to say, old friend, this time Easter _is_ more important than Christmas!"

"Hey! Did everyone hear that?" asked Bunny.

"We must hurry to the Warren," said North. "Everyone, to the sleigh!"

"Oh no, mate," Bunny said. "My Warren, my rules. Buckle up." With a heavy tap on the floor, Bunny opened a rabbit hole, and the entire group fell into the floor.

"Shostakovich!" cried North.

The Guardians, Jackie, plus two yetis and a few elves landed just outside the entrance to the Warren.

Due to their sizes, North and the yetis landed hard, but that didn't dampen North's good mood. "Buckle up," he said, chuckling to himself. "That's very funny."

But Bunny was all business. He stood on a moss-covered rock. It began to rise. Bellow the moss it wasn't a rock but an egg made of stone; one of Bunny's Sentinel eggs that guarded the Warren. "Now listen. Down here the eggs are safe. Up top, they'll be well hidden," he told his guests as he hopped on other Sentinel eggs that had begun to rise out of the ground. "It is our job to protect them in the tunnels on the way to the big show. If we get that far, we've got ourselves Easter."

As she entered Bunny's home, Jackie couldn't believe her eyes. The Warren was a gorgeous, lush, green meadow, with rocks and streams and colourful flowers.

Suddenly, Bunny raised his ear and sniffed the air. Something was wrong.

A faint shout came from one of Bunny's egg tunnels. Little eggs were rushing out of the passageway.

North drew his sword, Bunny took out his boomerang, and Jackie held tightly onto her staff. The Guardians were expecting Pitch, but then Jamie's sister, Sophie, popped out of the tunnel. She laid eyes on one the elves and began to run after him.

"What is SHE doing HERE?" Bunny asked, horrified.

North felt around in his coat to discover his pocket was empty. "Snow globe?"

"Crickey!" exclaimed Bunny. "Somebody do something!"

Jackie smirked. "Don't look at me, I'm invisible remember."

"Well I bet she's a fairy fan," Tooth said as she flew to the delighted girl. "It's okay, little one."

"Pretty," Sophie said to Tooth

"Awww." Tooth blushed. "You know what, I got something for you. Here it is." She pulled out a handful of teeth. "Look at all the pretty teeth with a little blood and gum on them."

Sophie screamed in Tooth's ear and ran off.

Jackie shook her head. "Blood and gums? When was the last time you guys actually hung out with kids?"

Tooth shrugged.

But Sophie got over her scare quickly, and soon she poked her head into a small tunnel and said, "Peekaboo."

"We are very busy bringing joy to children," North said. "We don't have time for…children." Embarrassed, he looked away.

Jackie formed a snowflake in her hand. She blew a little wind behind it, and the flake floated towards Sophie. When she tried to grab it, Jackie made a little more wind and began a game of chase.

"If one little kid can ruin Easter," Jackie said, "then we're in worst shape than I thought."

Jackie blew the snowflake towards Bunny while Sophie followed it, shouting, "Wheeee! Wheee, wheee, wheee!"

The flake landed on Bunny's nose and let off some of Jackie's magic.

Looking down at the little girl, Bunny finally smiled. "You wanna paint some eggs?"

"Okay!" Sophie answered brightly.

"Come on, then!" said Bunny.

At that moment, North looked round to see thousands and thousands of white eggs, all of which needed to be decorated. "That's a lot of eggs!"

"Uh, how much time do we have?" asked Jackie, tying her hair up into a messy bun with some ribbon from Maria's satchel.

But Bunny was busy having fun. "Whoooo-hoooo!" He hopped along the meadow with Sophie on his back.

"Wheeee!" Sophie squealed with delight.

Everywhere Bunny stepped, flowers bloomed beside his feet, white eggs turned to colour, and the valley glittered like a rainbow.

"All right, troops, it's time to push back," Bunny commanded. "That means eggs everywhere! Heaps of you in every high-rise, farmhouse, and trailer park! In tennis shoes and cereal bowls. There will be bathtubs filled with my beautiful googies!"

And with that, the Guardians and the eggs got going on the preparations for Easter. The eggs marched single file into a multicoloured stream. One of North's elves stood at the edge of the cliff. He couldn't get away fast enough as the eggs rushed towards him, and they all splashed down into the coloured stream below to be painted and decorated for their big show at Easter tomorrow. The eggs emerged from the stream in every colour and pattern imaginable (as did the unlucky elf).

A stray egg wandered off the path and ended up in a whirlpool. North fished it out, turning it around in the sunlight. The egg had a strange spiral pattern on it. It's legs were kicking about in the air.

"Okay," North said. "That's a little strange."

"Naw, mate." Bunny carefully took the egg in his paw. "That's adorable."

Sophie led the coloured eggs as they marched around Bunny. "There will be springtime!" Bunny encouraged. "On every continent! And I'm bringing hope with me."

Meanwhile, the yetis sprinkled glitter on some eggs, which then hopped down into different tunnels to be decorated with stripes.

Another yeti was hand painting some eggs when Bunny walked by. "To Christmassy, mate. Paint 'em blue," he instructed.

The yeti looked over to the pile of eggs he had already done and yet out a groan.

Sophie and Bunny began to play again.

"What's that over there?" Bunny asked her.

Sophie searched through the grass and found a decorated egg. She showed it to Bunny. "That's a beauty!" Bunny exclaimed.

"Pretty," Sophie agreed.

Soon all the eggs were ready, decorated, and gathered at the tunnels, ready for their big moment up top.

"Not bad," Jackie said approving of the operation.

"Not bad yourself," Bunny replied.

"Look," Jackie began, "I'm sorry about the whole kangaroo thing."

"It the accent, isn't it?" Bunny asked her.

North and Tooth came to join Bunny and Jackie. They all turned to see Sophie fast asleep.

"Ah, poor little ankle biter. Look at her, all tuckered out," Bunny said.

"I love her," said Tooth. "But I think it's time to get her home."

"How about I take her home?" Jackie suggested.

Tooth looked concerned. "Jackie, no! Pitch is-"

Jackie cut her off. "No match for this," she said, showing off her staff. "Trust me. I'll be quick as a bunny."

* * *

Back in Burgess, Jackie laid Sophie down into her bed. Baby Tooth had come with her to help with Sophie. When Sophie finally let go of her, she rolled over and then fell off the side of her mattress and onto the floor.

"Sophie?" her mother called from the hallway. "Is that you?"

Jackie placed a blanket over Sophie and left her comfortably snoozing on the rug.

Jackie and Baby Tooth Climbed out of the window.

"We should get back," Jackie started, when suddenly a voice called out.

"Jacqueline."

Jackie took off towards the sound. Baby Tooth went with her.

"Jacqueline."

Following the voice, Jackie sprinted through the trees until she reached a clearing. In the centre of the meadow was a child's old bed. It was broken and rotted.

Baby Tooth shivered, then pulled on Jackie's jacket to try and drag her out of the forest.

"Don't worry," Jackie tried to assure her. "There's still time."

With that, Jackie whacked the bed with her staff. It broke away to reveal a dark, deep hole in the ground. The voice called Jackie's name once again. With a shrug, Jackie jumped in. Baby Tooth stayed close behind.

Jackie and Baby Tooth followed the tunnels into a huge underground cavern. Every step of the way, Baby Tooth tugged on Jackie's jacket, trying to get her to come back with her.

"Baby Tooth, come on! I have to find out what that is," Jackie explained.

As they ventured farther, Jackie realised they were in Pitch's lair. Tooth's min-fairies were trapped in tiny cages, chirping and begging for Jackie to rescue them. Along the walls, the boxes of stolen teeth were stacked like pirate treasure. Heaps of teeth were piled in the centre of the room.

"Shhh!" Jackie told the fairies. "Keep it down." She flew up to a cage. "I'm going to get you out of here, just as soon as I-"

The voice from her memory cut into her thoughts. "Jacqueline…Jacqueline…"

She shook her head to clear it. "As I can."

"Jacqueline."

The voice seemed to be coming from the closest mound of baby teeth. Jackie dropped to her knees, searching through the pile, ignoring the insistent chirping of the Mini Fairies and Baby Tooth's frantic tugs at her jacket. Jackie just had to find the baby teeth that held the keys to her lost memories.

The room began to darken. Jackie raised her head to discover Pitch's shadow hovering above her.

"Looking for something?" Pitch asked. His shadow moved around the walls, then disappeared into a narrowed, cramped hallway.

Pitch cackled with laughter as Jackie raised her staff and began to follow.

"Don't be afraid Jacqueline," Pitch said. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"Afraid?" Jackie continued searching for Pitch. "I'm not afraid of you."

"Maybe no," Pitch said. "But you _are_ afraid of something."

"You think so, huh?" Jackie asked.

Pitch's shadow then moved to a bridge above Jackie's head. Shadows fell everywhere.

"I _know_ so. It the one thing I _always_ know." Pitch stepped into the light and faced Jackie. "People's greatest fears. Yours is that Maria and everyone you've ever known will leave you and you'll be left all alone. After all, Maria has her sisters and a very big job, she could decide you're holding her back and leave you. Also that you'll never be seen by children and be walked through all of your life."

Jackie felt a surge of panic, she never told anyone but Maria what she was most afraid of, but somehow Pitch knew. Jackie searched the room for a way out. She had to escape. The shadows in the cave surrounded her and what she thought was a wall was actually the floor. Jackie spun around, desperate to find an exit.

Pitch had disappeared again, but his voice still boomed throughout the lair. "And worst of all, your afraid you'll never know _why_. Why you? Why were you chosen to be like this?"

At that moment, Jackie found an exit, but it was closed off with bricks. She watched as Pitch's shadow moved closer.

"Well, fear not, for the answer to that is right here." Pitch held out a tooth box towards Jackie. The box had the picture of a little girl and the name _Jacqueline Frost _written on it. "Do you want them, Jacqueline? Your memories?" Pitch jiggled the box so the teeth rattled.

Jackie reached forward but then held back her hand. She wanted to reach out and grab the teeth, but then again, she couldn't. taking them from Pitch would be a mistake. While she debated what to do, Pitch moved back into the main area of the cavernous lair.

"Everything you want to know in this little box," Pitch taunted.

Jackie pursued Pitch, but every time she got close, Pitch moved away. It was though Jackie was trapped in a carnival fun house. More and more shadows of Pitch began to appear.

"Why did you end up like this?" the many Pitches continued. "Unseen, unable to reach out to anyone. You want the answers so badly. You want to grab them and fly off with them, but you're afraid of what Maria and the Guardians will think."

Jackie felt the shadows all around her. She was trapped in a corner.

"You're afraid of disappointing them," the many Pitches went on. "Well, let me ease your mind about one thing; they'll never accept you. Not _really_. I bet Maria only stays with you out of pity."

Jackie waved her hands at the shadows. "Stop it!" She shouted. "Stop it!"

"After all you're not one of them." Pitch said, pulling all of the shadows of himself together and standing in front of Jackie.

"You don't know what I am!" Jackie said, taking aim at Pitch with her staff.

Pitch laughed. "Of course I do. You're Jacqueline Frost. You make a mess wherever you go. Why, you're doing it right now."

Pitch tossed Jackie's tooth box into the air.

Jackie caught it and them asked, "What did you do?

Pitch smiled. "More to the point, Jacqueline, what did _you_ do?"

With an echoing laugh, Pitch moved backwards though the room. Anger filled Jackie, and she lunged, but she wrapped her arms around nothing but air. An instant later Jackie was swallowed into one of Jackie's blackest holes.

Jackie landed in an egg tunnel and charged, ready to fight Pitch, but then she remembered she left someone behind…Someone important. "Baby Tooth!" She cried out. When she tried to go back to Pitch's lair, she ran right into one of Bunny's Sentinel eggs. her fingers closed around her tooth box as she examined her surroundings. The eggs! thousands of eggs were smashed in the tunnel surrounding the warren.

"Happy Easter, Jacqueline." Pitch's voice drifted around the tunnel.

"No…" Jackie said breathlessly.


	13. Maria's gathering

**Maria's gathering.**

Maria crushed another nightmare that was haunting a child, sending him into a dreamless sleep; better than a sleep filled with nightmares though.

She flew over a group of children who were starting to lose their belief, she sprinkled them with her dream-dust, opening up their imagination and thus their belief.

She slashed the Nightmares that had been chasing her to sand.

"This is getting to be too much," Maria said to herself. "I need reinforcements."

Maria flew to Mount Everest, the highest natural point of the Earth. There was a house there that was invisible to humans and even most spirits, it stood tall and firm despite the weather conditions. She flew up to the door and knocked.

A girl of the physical age of 14 answered the door. Her black hair went down to her ankles and was in pigtails, her eyes were a fiery-red. She wore a black choker with a white cross hanging from it around her neck, a white t-shirt, a black overcoat with white trimmings, black gloves with white cuffs, black trousers with a white belt, and black and white trainers.

The girl recognised Maria immediately and let her inside. The house was welcoming and warm. Star charts and other things to do with space hung on the walls and decorated tables. Maria walked into the living room of the house and sat down on a chair while the other girl went to do something.

Maria was not alone in the room, there was another girl who looked to be 14 there curled up on the sofa with a book on her lap. She had short white hair that just reached her shoulders and the fringe hid her left eye, the eye that was visible was a deep-blue, red animal ears protruded from the top of her head, and a red bushy tail with a white tip came out from behind her. She wore a white tank-top, a red sleeveless overcoat with white trimmings, red trousers that went brown halfway down the legs, and brown boots with steel tips. At the side of the sofa rested a staff, it was made of brown wood and had a blue gem imbedded in it.

The girl finished reading the chapter of the book she was reading and placed it down onto the table in front of her. She then looked over to Maria.

"Hello, Maria. What a pleasant surprise." her voice was soft but held a mischievous tone to it.

"Hello, Vida." Maria greeted the girl back.

The other girl walked in with orange juice and biscuits, she set it down on the table and sat down next to Vida. She then gently slapped Vida's feet to get her to remove her shoes from the sofa.

"Sorry, Layla." Vida told the girl, taking a biscuit an a glass of orange juice.

Layla rolled her eyes.

"So, why are you here, you don't usually visit this time of the year." Vida asked Maria.

"I need you help." Maria then explained to them everything that had happened to her so far.

"Of course we'll help fight Pitch," Vida proclaimed. Layla nodded her head.

"Good. You two get Peter, I'll get my sisters and the Seasonal spirits. We'll rendezvous on top of Mount Parnassus."

Maria walked out the front door and took off with her dream-dust.

Layla held her hands up to the star-filled sky and one of the constellations began to glow, it took the shape of a Pegasus. The Pegasus came to life and galloped down to Layla and Vida, it was a regular horse size and was made of glowing starlight. Layla and Vida climbed onto it's back with Layla on the front and Vida holding onto her waist and her staff attached to her back.

* * *

"Second star to the right and straight on 'till morning, right?" Vida asked Layla.

Layla nodded her head. Layla reared her Pegasus upwards toward the sky, heading toward a bright star in the sky. The flew higher and her until they left the atmosphere, but they weren't in normal space because they could breath and planets were nearby without crashing into each other, the Pegasus galloped faster and fast until their was a explosion of light as they reached the star.

When the light dimmed they were over water and heading towards a island just as the sun began to rise.

"Neverland," Vida said breathlessly. "I'll never get over how beautiful this place is."

Layla hummed in agreement.

The starlight Pegasus touched down somewhere in the forest, Vida and Layla climbed off it's back. Layla walked up to a tree and knocked on it, the tree gave off an echoing sound in response. Suddenly, part of the front of the tree lifted up and five young boys ran out of the opening, yelling wildly and brandishing swords. However, when they saw Vida and Layla they abandoned their swords and tackled the two girls in a hug.

"Alright, alright, good to see you all too. Now get off us." Vida told the boys.

The boys climbed off of the girls and stood up straight.

"Pips, Cam, Timmy, Jacob, Chase." Vida addressed the boys while Layla nodded at them.

"Vida, Layla." the boys greeted back.

"Where's Peter, we need to talk to him." Vida asked.

"Ask of me and I shall appear." came a proud voice.

Above the group was a boy who was older that the other boys but younger than the girls, he was dressed in skeleton leaves. Next to the boy was a glowing light, in that light was a tiny woman with wings, she was also dressed in skeleton leaves; a fairy.

"Peter." Vida addressed the boy. "Tinker Bell." Vida addressed the small woman.

Layla once again nodded to the two.

"I'll cut to the chase. We're here because Maria needs our help." Vida they relayed what Maria had told her.

"And why should I get involved?" Peter asked.

"Because Pitch is looking to destroy childhood with his fear, without childhood Neverland will fade, and you will become a normal child and have to grow up. Even if children still hang on to Neverland enough to keep it from fading and to keep you young, what's to stop Pitch from finding out about Neverland and seeking to corrupt it like he did Sandman? Pitch isn't like Hook, his fear would consume you before you could even touch him." Vida said, her voice rising slightly.

Layla let out some starlight to get everyone's attention before making motions with her hands, but everyone knew what they meant.

'There's also the Muses, more pacifically Maria. She's the Muse of imagination, if she survives the battle she will have no choice but to spread imagination to people with fear, Pitch would use it to heighten people's fears with different possibilities, but Maria will have to do it or fail her job as a Muse.'

Peter didn't need anymore convincing. "I'll join the fight." he said, one of the few times he acted genially serious.

"Can we come, Peter?" Pips asked.

"Yeah, can we come?" the rest of the boys asked at once.

Peter looked over to Layla and Vida, they nodded their heads.

"Yes." he told them.

The boys cheered.

"Let's go." Vida said.

The boys flew into the air and Layla mounted her starlight Pegasus, Vida was just about to climb on behind her when Peter said, "Hold it, Vida. It'd be better if you could fly on your own. Tinker Bell?"

Tinker Bell flew over Vida and sprinkled her dust over her. Vida then began to rise off the ground on her own. Vida laughed as she got used to being in the air with no support.

Layla climbed off her Pegasus and it turned back into starlight, the starlight then collected at Layla's back to form wings, the starlight dimmed to reveal angel-like wings on her back. Layla preferred this method of flying and since she didn't have to carry Vida anymore she could use it.

"As I was saying, let's go."

The nine took off and flew away from the island, journeying away from Neverland and back to Earth.

* * *

Maria entered the temple of the elements, since she shared a blood bond with all four of the Seasonal spirits she could enter without one of them being with her. She entered a room with four walls, each wall had a painting of a season on it. At the centre of the room was a small tree, the tree was split into four sections for the seasons as well; spring had blossom on it, summer had green leaves, autumn had red and brown leaves that were falling off onto the ground but disappeared soon after, and winter had no leaves but the branches were covered with snow and icicles.

Maria put her hand over the tree and called forth the Seasonal spirits apart from Jackie.

Minutes later there were gusts of wind and the three spirits entered the room.

Sorlay still had his hair in dreadlocks, he wore a sleeveless green jacket and red shorts. His staff broke off in two branches at the top and spiralled back down the staff about a third of the way and glowed green.

Andromeda's hair touched the ground and had a white and yellow flower in it, she wore a flower chain around her neck, a white summer dress with yellow trimmings, and white leggings. Her staff spiralled at the top and glowed pink.

Aki's hair was messy and stuck out in spikes, he wore a brown pullover jacket, and blue baggy jeans. His staff split off into three branches that came together to form a sort of cage and glowed red.

"Maria, why have you called us here? And where's Jackie?" Aki asked.

"I need you help." Maria told them, she then explained what had happened.

"Of course we'll help, there's no way Pitch is going to mess with my sister and get away with it." Sorlay said.

Andromeda and Aki agreed.

Maria led the group to Mount Parnassus, where she went into the temple and used the orb containing dream-dust to summon her sisters. The four were joined by the rest of the Muses not long after.

Zoë's hair went passed her shoulders and was kept out of her face by a light-pink head band, oval black glasses rested in front of her eyes, she wore a blue buttoned up shirt, blue jeans, and red and white boots. Her twin katana were strapped to her back like always.

Crysta's pink hair was in pigtails, she wore a red top with white trimmings, a red skirt with a white line across it near the bottom, a white cape with a red stripe near the bottom, white tights, and red shoes. She held a red cane with a red orb at the top.

Dora's purple hair was in a ponytail that went up slightly before going down and was just passed her knees, she had purple cat ears coming out o the top of her head and a purple cats tail coming from her spine, she wore a golden cat collar, a purple shirt, a white undershirt, purple gloves, purple jeans with a yellow belt, and yellow trainers. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what her favourite colour was.

Melody's dark-blue hair reached her waist, she wore black headphones, a black string tied in a bow around her neck, a red and white striped jumper that was a little too big for her, black trousers, a small white bag hung that from her waist, and black boots.

"What's the emergency?" Dora asked.

Maria took a breath as she one again explained what had happened.

"He's been corrupting our dream-dust? He's going to pay." Dora growled.

"Normally I'd say we should keep out of this because of who we are, but Pitch is causing an imbalance of the two sides, and we must correct the balance." Zoë said.

"I told Vida and Layla to meet us on top of the mountain with Peter, once we are all together we head to help the Guardians." Maria said.

Everyone in the room suddenly gasped. They felt strong negative emotions over their blood bond; it was from Jackie.

"What could have happened to her for us to feel it so strong?" Andromeda asked.

"Pitch must be trying to install fear into her mind." Zoë said.

"No. It had fear but it was more of sadness." Maria said.

"Maybe the Guardians have done something to upset her." Melody suggested.

"For there sake, I hope not." Sorlay said, cracking his knuckles.

"I'll go find her. You wait for the others before heading off to find the Guardians." Maria said. "Oh, Sorlay?"

"Yes?" Sorlay asked.

"If it was the Guardians who caused it you have my permission to do what you want to them."

And with that Maria left the temple.

Sorlay smiled almost evilly at the prospect of what he was going to do to the Guardians if it was them who upset his sister.

The Muses and Seasonal spirit exited the cave and waited on top of the mountain for the rest of the group. They didn't have to wait long. Vida, Layla, Peter, and the Lost boys soon landed next to them. They all greeted each other in the appropriate manner before asking the wind to guide them to the Guardians.


End file.
